Guillard and the UFC honored to be fighting for the troops

The military has given to him, so Melvin Guillard is happy to give back. The same goes for UFC president Dana White.

The promotion is just a few days away from putting on its third fight card on a U.S. military base. This time it's Ft. Hood in Texas and the UFC is hoping to exceed the $4 million it raised in late 2008 with a fight card in Fayetteville, N.C. 

"I'm going to give these guys a show," Guillard said during the "Fight for the Troops 2" teleconference. "You know, they work so hard to protect us every year, year after year. Some of them give up going overseas and got to live there for years at a time. And, you know, this is a blessing for me to even be asked to give a performance that I'm going to give these guys next week -- and guys and girls. So to me, it's just all part of being an American and I'm honored."

Guillard knows first hand of the sacrifice.

"I stay right now in Albuquerque with Staff Sergeant Chris Molina and his family. This is where I stay when I come here. So, you know, getting the military experience of staying with families, you know, seeing what these guys go through to protect our country, I've actually had chances to visit certain military bases and I also have a ton of friends in high school that got out of high school that’s in military, whether it's Marine Corps or Army or Air Force or whatever," said Guillard.

White decided Ft. Hood was a good spot this time around after seeing the work done by the Fisher family in Texas and around the country.

"What happened was we got invited down there and I went down. It was the first time I'd ever seen anything like that -- when I visited the hospital and what these guys, you know, the Fisher family who started this thing, what they’ve done for the troops here fighting in the United States, it's -- I can't even -- I can't put it into words for you. When these kids get injured, you know, you’ve got these 18-, 19-, 20-year-old kids that are getting injured over there -- they come back, it's sad to say but the government doesn’t take care of them, which is mind boggling," said White.

"So this family has put together this thing where -- and if you're a parent of one of these kids, I mean anybody who's on this call who has kids can understand. Your kid gets his arms, legs blown off, his face is melted -- the horrible things that happen to these guys -- and they're laying in a hospital bed out in the middle of Nowhere, Virginia, what do you do? You know what you do? You quit your job, you lose everything you have and you drive out there and you live in your car and you sit in a chair in the bed next to them."

The UFC raised $4 million around Fight for the Troops 1 and is hoping to eclipse that number this time. The proceeds this year will benefit the 53 Fisher Houses around the U.S. and in Germany and the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

"Fight for the Troops" goes down this Saturday on Spike (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).

Thanks to Spike for conference call transcript

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UFC cribs video: Silva's personality on display; Conspiracy theorists emerge too

In 2010, the UFC did a great job of upping the video content on its website. This year is off to a good start with a "UFC Cribs" episode featuring middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

The reporter, Paulinha Sack goes toe-to-toe with Silva and the champ shows that he indeed has a good personality. We just wish the media in the U.S. got to see more of that before and between his fights.

During the video shoot, Silva said he weighed 220 pounds. Sack busts his chops about having kids pudding, hot dogs and cheese balls in the refrigerator.

The champ takes us all over his Rio de Janeiro house, even the closet. Either Silva is OCD or he has a great cleaning person. That is one super-organized closet for a dude.

Leave it to the MMA blogosphere to find some controversy in this light video.

Look out! What's that in Silva closet? Needles? Cheater! Hopefully, a full-scaled investigation has been launched.  

Caged Insider has the details of needle-gate.

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Indianapolis Colts Fire Long-Tenured Running Backs Coach Gene Huey

Filed under: Colts, AFC South

INDIANAPOLIS -- Gene Huey is no longer coaching the Indianapolis Colts' running backs.

Huey, the longest-tenured Colts assistant coach in recent seasons, will not be retained by the team, the Colts announced on Tuesday.

Huey spent 19 seasons with the Colts, the most for an assistant in franchise history.

"I thank Gene Huey for the work he has done for the club for many seasons," coach Jim Caldwell said in a statement. "During his time, Gene played a key role with many players both on and off the field, and he was a part of coaching staffs that helped create a very special time in franchise history.

"I thank him for his contributions and wish him continued success."

Huey, 63, coached 304 games with the Colts, also the most for an assistant in franchise history. In the last two decades, he has worked with 1,000-yard rushers and Pro Bowl running backs such as Edgerrin James -- the franchise's all-time leading rusher -- Marshall Faulk and Joseph Addai.

Each of those players made the Pro Bowl with the Colts.

 

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Silva overpowers Vera, smashes his nose in win at UFC 125

Brandon Vera just can't figure it out. He was great at heavyweight, but his drop to light heavyweight has been riddled with lackluster fights. It happened again tonight as Thiago Silva took him down then held him down and beat upon him for 13-of-15 minutes rolling to a unanimous decision win, 30-26, 30-27 and 30-27.

Vera was helpless throughout and really showed no sense of urgency. Even when the fight ended, Vera with a horribly crooked, broken nose, sort of clowned with the crowd.

That attitude was shocking considering Vera had just dropped to 3-4 at 205 pounds with the UFC. This loss makes it three straight loss for Vera (11-6, 7-6 UFC). He's in jeopardy of being cut by the promotion.

This was a great bounceback victory for Silva, who was incredibly dangerous during a close loss to Rashad Evans at UFC 108. Silva had Evans hurt badly in that fight, but lacked stamina down the stretch. He claimed a back injury had kept from normal training.

Silva hadn't fought since Jan. 2 of 2010. Entering this fight, he looked much better physically and had plenty of energy for all 15 minutes.

Silva (15-2, 6-2 UFC) so dominated down the stretch that he pinned Vera on the cage for the final three minutes. Sitting on Vera's back, Silva began to open-hand slap the Filipino-American. He even slapped a little tune on his back. In the final minute, he unloaded with some heavy punches. That's when it looked like Silva put a huge dent into Vera's schnoz. 

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Hilary plays nurse to hurt hubby Mike

She?s already an actress, singer and author, but now, Hilary Duff has a new job ? nurse! Instead of putting her feet up over the holidays, the busy starlet tended to her hockey player husband, Mike Comrie, as he recovered from hip surgery in Vail, Colo. ?He was a good patient,? Hilary told In Touch at the Kentucky Derby Prelude Party in West Hollywood on January 13. ?Boys are a little whiny, but he was really good!? Meanwhile, Hilary is not only taking care of her husband, she?s taking care of herself. The actress, who trimmed up for her August wedding, works out with Hollywood trainer Harley Pasternak. ?He is so mean to me!? she said. He kicks my [butt] every day!?

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Lakers, Artest Halt Durant, Though Thunder Star Says Otherwise

Filed under: Lakers, Thunder

LOS ANGELES - The Lakers-Oklahoma City rematch was a multi-dimensional affair.

The older and wiser two-time defending champions repeated their postseason style in this regular-season setting on Monday night at Staples Center, downing these young Thunder 101-94 with the sort of approach that helped them win the memorable first-round series in six games last April.

In a game that was the first matchup since the series that some considered the most entertaining of them all, Kobe Bryant did adequate damage (21 points on 7 of 12 shooting, seven assists and five turnovers), Pau Gasol followed his mildly-successful suit (21 points on 8 of 19 shooting, seven rebounds), Lamar Odom picked up the slack (16 points on six of nine shooting and seven rebounds) and the rare sight of Derek Fisher scoring points (a season-high 15 of them, in fact) was too much for this dangerous Thunder team to handle.

But this matchup was always more about Kevin Durant than anything else, the young star taking the big stage for the first time to see if he could match the magnitude of the moment. But this time, just like last time, Artest stood in his way.

Whether Durant wanted to acknowledge it or not.

 

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Strikeforce's brilliant move: Overeem and his belt in heavyweight tourney

Scott Coker and company keep hitting home runs with his Strikeforce heavyweight tournament, yet there are some fans who are still complaining. Why?

Earlier in the day, Showtime's play-by-play voice @mauroranallo snapped off on some Twitter followers for the incessant bitching about the format and the participants. I don't blame him. Showtime and Strikeforce nailed this one and the fury over the bracket or Alistair Overeem's inclusion is mind-boggling. 

One of my followers on Twitter @mmafan84 sent out this tweet: 

Really? These fights were going to happen "anyway?" Strikeforce just went through a horrendous year of heavyweight matchmaking. This tournament seems like the only way to guarantee the fights that fans want to see will actually take place. Fighters are free to pull out, but that's on them now.

 

As far as the bracket complaints, who cares? Most fans have been clamoring for Fedor Emelianenko vs. Alistair Overeem and ripping Strikeforce for not getting the fight done. With Fedor and "The Reem" on the same of the bracket, and one less fight to get through, the risk of missing out on the fight is reduced. You cry for the integrity of the tournament, I'll enjoy Overeem-Fedor in the semis.

Update - It was reported earlier in the day that all Overeem fights would be five rounds. 

Showtime/Strikeforce also nailed it by not adhering to the stupid precedent that a tourney should be waged to decide who gets to face the champ.

Overeem, the Strikeforce title holder, has to be in the field. Showtime employed the same strategy with its Super Six boxing tournament featuring the elite 168 pounders in the world. Carl Froch entered the tournament with the WBC strap, lost it and then got it back. If he's good enough to take out both Glen Johnson and probably Andre Ward, then he'll emerge with the title later in 2011. The same goes for Overeem.

Frankly, any MMA media person or fan, who thinks it's smart to keep Overeem on the sidelines is insane. The guy fought MMA one time between New Year's Eve 2009 and New Year's Eve 2010. This tournament guarantees that Overeem gets fights in the U.S. In the end, that's great for MMA.

The only person who doesn't think so, is MMA television analyst Chael Sonnen. Sonnen crapped all over Overeem during a recent appearance. He's entitled to his opinion. That's what television is all about.

MMA Live is developing some of the best MMA analysts on TV, but ESPN needs to nail one or two polarizing, opinionated figures to match what the major sports already have on the network. Maybe Sonnen is that guy.

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Antrel Rolle, Kenny Phillips Want Tom Coughlin to Be More Like Rex Ryan

Filed under: Giants, NFL Coaching

The Giants' starting safeties want their coach, Tom Coughlin to be more like New York's other sideline boss, Rex Ryan.

The duo pointed to the fun, loose atmosphere Ryan imparts on his Jets as part of the reason for their success. They wish they could have some of that on the Giants.

"If you match us up against the Jets, do I think they're a better team? No, I don't think so at all," Rolle said.

"But when it comes to their chemistry, I think their chemistry might be better than ours. I think they have a lot more fun than we have ... At the end of the day, yeah, we're professional athletes, we get paid a lot of money to do what we do but we're all human. No one is a robot at this level. We do have feelings, we like to have fun.

"People want to talk about Rex Ryan and this, that and the other, that team is going to war for him. They would die for him."

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Video: Four Players Ejected After Lakers-Clippers Scuffle

Filed under: Clippers, Lakers, NBA Videos

The Clippers came from seven points down with just over seven minutes remaining to beat the Lakers on Sunday, and Blake Griffin was largely the man responsible. After a slow start due to some early foul trouble, Griffin exploded for 10 points and eight rebounds in the final quarter, and played hard to the very end -- something that obviously didn't sit well with Lamar Odom.

With 5.7 seconds remaining and the Clippers' Randy Foye hitting the second of two free throws to put his team up nine, Griffin and Odom got tangled up as the two fought for position. Odom didn't like the fact that Griffin was working so hard for a potential rebound with the game already decided, so he took him by the jersey and flung Griffin out of bounds.

Video of the incident can be seen in the clip below.

 

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Giants Top Ranking of NFC East Secondaries in 2010

Filed under: Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, Redskins, NFC East

No NFC player had more interceptions in 2010 than Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel. No NFL player picked off as many passes in a game in nine years as Washington Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall did in Week 7. And of the 13 active players with as many as 28 career interceptions, four -- Samuel, Hall, New York Giants safety Deon Grant and Dallas Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman -- call the NFC East home. No other division boasts more than two such thieves.

But that doesn't mean that 2010 was a great year for NFC East secondaries. In the key statistics of points allowed and passing yards allowed, the Redskins and Cowboys both finished in the bottom third of the league. The Eagles and Giants finished in the top half in the latter but not the former. New York's pass defense was shredded by Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the Week 16 defeat that kept the 10-6 Giants out of the playoffs. Philadelphia's pass defense was bad enough that coach Andy Reid fired second-year coordinator Sean McDermott on Saturday.

So let's take a more in-depth look at how the division's defensive backs performed in 2010 and what to expect in 2011.

GIANTS -- New York didn't have a standout like Philadelphia's Samuel, but except for Week 5 in Houston when Grant started for Kenny Phillips at strong safety, the Giants had incredible stability. Cornerbacks Terrell Thomas and Corey Webster and Pro Bowl free safety Antrel Rolle each started all 16 games as Big Blue finished ninth against the pass in 2009 when Phillips spent most of the year on injured reserve and Rolle (Arizona Cardinals) and Grant (Seattle Seahawks) were playing for other teams.

With the help of one of the league's top pass rushes, New York's secondary only surrendered 300 net passing yards in three games (301 in a Week 6 victory over Detroit, 324 in a Week 10 loss to Jon Kitna and the Cowboys and a whopping 396 in the aforementioned drubbing at Lambeau Field). Thomas, particularly aggressive against the run for a cornerback, Rolle and Phillips all ranked among New York's top four tacklers. Thomas was third on the Giants with four forced fumbles while Phillips and Grant tied for second with three fumble recoveries. Thomas led the way with five interceptions, one more than Webster registered and two more than Grant produced. The secondary accounted for 14 of the Giants' 15 pickoffs,

Rolle was also a constantly vocal presence in the media for first-year coordinator Perry Fewell, whose defense rose from 30th in points allowed under predecessor Bill Sheridan to a more respectable 17th.

Grant, who'll be 32 in March, is the only unsigned member of the top six in the secondary (including third corner Aaron Ross). Webster will be 29 in March. Thomas is 26. Rolle and Ross are 28. Phillips is just 24 so the continuity should continue in 2011. GRADE: B

EAGLES -- Samuel led the NFC and tied for second in the league with seven interceptions although he missed a game with a concussion, three with a sprained knee and a fifth when coach Andy Reid rested most of his regulars for the meaningless finale against the Cowboys. Among active cornerbacks, only Denver's Champ Bailey (48) and Green Bay's Charles Woodson (47) have more career interceptions than Samuel's 42 and they have played four and five more years, respectively. At times, Samuel can be too aggressive, playing the ball instead of the receiver and going for knockout blows with his tackles, but he remains a player against whom opposing quarterbacks have to be very careful or they'll get burned as the Manning brothers each learned again twice in November games against the Eagles.

Samuel's former New England teammate, Ellis Hobbs, began the season as Philadelphia's other cornerback, but he suffered a season-ending neck injury on a kickoff return against the Giants in Week 11, leaving his career in jeopardy. Journeyman Dimitri Patterson replaced Hobbs, but after a solid start that included two (of his four) interceptions against the Redskins, Patterson was toasted often late in the season, particularly in the wild Week 15 game against the Giants. Former third cornerback Joselio Hanson started the three games when Samuel was sidelined with the ailing knee and was decent. Rookie Trevard Lindley started the finale.

At safety, veteran strongside starter Quintin Mikell was credited with a team-high 111 tackles including 83 solos. He also tied for the team lead with three fumble recoveries, forced a fumble, recorded a sack and picked off three passes. Free safety Nate Allen had a strong rookie year with three interceptions, two sacks and a forced fumble along with 59 tackles before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 14. Fellow rookie Kurt Coleman took over and generally performed well. .

Mikell, 30, is unsigned for 2011. Samuel, 30, Patterson, 27 and Hanson, 29, are the other veterans in the secondary if Hobbs, 27, retires. Secondary coach Dick Jauron is the most likely candidate to replace McDermott but while that post is unfilled, the unit and the entire defense remains in limbo. GRADE: B-

REDSKINS: The flashy, voluble Hall had those four interceptions in the victory at Chicago, returning one for the clinching touchdown. He also won the opener against the Cowboys by returning a fumble for Washington's only touchdown. However, Hall only had two interceptions the rest of the season and was burned for several long completions and touchdowns, notably in Week 10 against the Eagles and in the finale by the Giants' Mario Manningham.

Hall, 27, was still chosen for his third Pro Bowl, his first since 2006. He forced two fumbles and recovered two and led the secondary in tackles, the latter because strong safety LaRon Landry, 26, suffered a season-ending Achilles' injury in Week 10 when he was leading the Pro Bowl balloting thanks to some vicious tackles, 10 quarterback hurries and the overtime interception that set up the field goal that upset the Packers. Reed Doughty, 28, replaced Landry. While a solid run defender, Doughty isn't nearly the athlete that Landry is and is even more of a liability in pass coverage for a defense that ranked 31st against the pass.

Like Doughty, cornerback Carlos Rogers, 29, is unsigned for 2011. While 2006 sixth-round draft pick Doughty should be very affordable to retain, Rogers, the ninth overall selection in 2005, is looking for a lucrative contract. Best known for dropping sure interceptions, Rogers had a good year in coverage and was much happier under new coordinator Jim Haslett than he had been under Greg Blache, who benched him at times in 2008 and 2009. Phillip Buchanon, 30, was solid while starting the five games that Rogers missed with hamstring injuries.

Third-year man Kareem Moore won the free safety job in August but injured a knee in preseason, missed the first two games while he recovered from arthroscopic surgery and generally struggled, especially in run defense before missing the final two games with the knee. Reserve cornerback Kevin Barnes, 24, took over and made the interception in overtime that set up the field goal that upset Jacksonville. GRADE: D+

COWBOYS: After ranking second in scoring defense in 2009, Dallas crashed to 31st in 2010. The Cowboys' horrid first half cost coach/defensive coordinator Wade Phillips his job. However, Paul Pasqualoni, who was promoted from defensive line coach to coordinator, didn't tinker much, keeping Newman, 2009 Pro Bowl pick Mike Jenkins, Sensabaugh and Ball as his starters. The Cowboys ranked 26th against the pass after finishing 20th in 2009.

Although Newman, 32, didn't match his usual Pro Bowl standard and could be over the hill despite his five interceptions, the big disappointment was third-year man Jenkins, who was careless in coverage, weak in tackling and hustle and dropped from five interceptions in 2009 to one. Third cornerback Orlando Scandrick, who'll be 24 next month, and rookie free agent Bryan McCann, who was on the practice squad for the first seven games, had as many interceptions and were more positive factors. Jenkins needs to bounce back in a big way under the new coordinator -- probably Rob Ryan, formerly with Oakland and Cleveland -- in 2011.

 

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UFC suspends Sonnen after guilty plea in mortgage fraud

Following his guilty plea in a mortgage fraud case, UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen has been suspended by the UFC, and his bout with Yoshihiro Akiyama is on hold. TMZ reported that Dana White said that Sonnen's contract is "frozen."

"Chael Sonnen has gone through a lot in the last few months and we think it's important for him to focus on getting his personal life together before focusing on his career in the UFC." White adds, "I spoke with Chael earlier today and he agrees that setting priorities in his life is the best thing for him right now. I sincerely hope Chael is able to straighten out his personal life."

Sonnen is expected to receive two years probation and be required to pay a $10,000 fine. He is far from the first UFC fighter to run afoul of the law while on the promotion's payroll.

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, the one-time light heavyweight champ, plead guilty last January to going on a reckless driving spree in southern California. Later in 2009, he coached on "The Ultimate Fighter" and starred in a remake of "The A-Team."

Josh Neer fought on Ultimate Fight Night 17 just over a month after his second DUI arrest, but wasn't cut from the UFC until he had two losses in a row. Chris Leben, who fought last weekend at UFC 125, was arrested for a DUI in October 2010 and a probation violation in April 2008.

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Lew Wolff, A's Owner, Denies Interest in Buying Dodgers

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Athletics, Dodgers, MLB Biz, Sports Business and Media

On Tuesday ESPN.com's Buster Olney wondered if Oakland Athletics owner Lew Wolff could become the next owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, connecting the dots between Wolff's unsettled stadium situation in the Bay Area, the increasing likelihood that financial pressure will force Frank McCourt out at Chavez Ravine and commissioner Bud Selig's past history as an ownership deal-maker.

It was little more than idle speculation -- the type that we so often hear this time of year -- but Wolff nevertheless felt compelled to respond.

"There is no truth to this report," said the A's in a press release. "Mr. Wolff has no interest whatsoever in purchasing the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise. Furthermore, he has no knowledge of the source of any such rumor, and he has informed Major League Baseball and Dodgers ownership of his position."

 

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The MMA sched is light: Let's watch people steal hats and Dana White dance

The fellas over at Fightlinker can always fill the slow periods in the mixed martial arts schedule. Things heat up again next weekend with Ultimate Fight Night 23 from Ft. Hood, Tx. and then Strikeforce: Diaz vs. "Cyborg" on Jan. 29. Until then, let's kill some time with these videos.

What's more entertaining? Fans stealing hats or Dana White "jamming" on stage with Snoop Dogg in Las Vegas?

Tip via Fightlinker. Enjoy the GIFs as well.

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Chael Sonnen Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering

by Michael David SmithChael Sonnen, the UFC middleweight currently serving a suspension for performance-enhancing drugs, has pleaded guilty to money laundering related to mortgage fraud.

According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of Oregon, Sonnen pleaded guilty Monday and will be sentenced on March 28. Sonnen could face up to 20 years in prison, but he is expected to cooperate as a witness against others involved in the mortgage fraud investigation, and so his sentence is likely to be considerably lighter.

Michelle Holman Kerin, the assistant U.S. attorney handling the case, told the Oregonian that Sonnen agreed to give up his Realtor's license and pay a $10,000 fine. The government is recommending Sonnen be sentenced to two years of probation.

"This office will continue to aggressively prosecute real estate professionals who committed the mortgage fraud that contributed to this country's economic downturn and wreaked havoc on our community's housing market," US Attorney Dwight Holton said in a statement. "We entrusted these professionals to honestly broker real estate transactions and instead, they defrauded lending institutions throughout the country and left financial ruin in their wake."

 

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Step onto the red carpet with the stars tonight!

Wish you could walk down the red carpet with A-list celebrities? You can, thanks to NowLive! The new interactive media company will stream their first live event tonight (January 10 ? 9:30 p.m. ET/ 6:30 p.m. PT) at the world premiere of The Green Hornet at Grauman?s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Through an exclusive partnership with Sony Pictures, fans can watch Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Jay Chou and all of the stars of the film walk the red carpet, dish about the green superhero and more. To watch, visit: nowlive.com/greenhornetmovie.

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NBA All-Star Voting: Stoudemire, Rose Move Into Starting Lineup

Filed under: Bulls, Celtics, Knicks, NBA All-Star Game

The NBA released its final update to the fan voting for the All-Star game, two weeks before the official results are announced live on TNT on Jan. 27. And this one was more interesting than most, thanks to two of the five spots in the Eastern Conference's starting lineup changing hands.

Amar'e Stoudemire -- in most people's opinion, and even that of his former head coach, the league's MVP to this point -- overtook the injured Kevin Garnett, and now holds a lead of over 93,000 votes for one of the two starting forward spots. Garnett's teammate, Rajon Rondo, was similarly surpassed by another MVP candidate, Chicago's Derrick Rose. Rondo missed some time due to injury, but the way Rose has been playing, he might have eventually surpassed Rondo in the fans' eyes anyway. Rose now has a cushion of over 54,000 votes.

These appear to be the only two real races for spots in the starting lineup, as the rest of the margins seem to be too great to overcome over the next couple of weeks. Dwight Howard, LeBron James, and Dwyane Wade are the East's leading vote-getters (in that order), while out West, there were no changes to what appears to be a solid starting lineup of Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, and the ever-popular All-Star vote recipient, Yao Ming. Yao is obviously injured and out for the season, so David Stern will get to choose his replacement in the starting lineup -- likely Andrew Bynum or Pau Gasol, but it wouldn't be a complete shock to see him go with Tim Duncan, either.

The top 10 vote-getters at each position are listed below:

 

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Jay Cutler Quiets Critics With Scintillating Playoff Debut

Filed under: Chicago Bears, Seahawks, NFL Playoffs, Super Bowl, NFL Quarterbacks, NFL Analysis

CHICAGO -- The very first thing Chicago coach Lovie Smith mentioned was his team's fast start. Then he credited the offensive line. Then the running game. Then the tight end.

And finally, "Of course, it starts with Jay Cutler."

Best for last? That might be something of a stretch. The Bears were dominant across the board in grounding the Seattle Seahawks back to reality. Chicago's 35-24 win in Sunday's NFC divisional round wasn't nearly as close as the score might suggest. The balanced Bears had 437 yards of offense, including 170 on the ground, led 28-0 and held the Seahawks to just 114 yards through three quarters.

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Bears 35, Seahawks 24: Quick Hits | Box Score | Recap
David Whitley: Bears Set Up Game of Destiny Against Packers

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Dennis Byrd's Inspirational Message Reached Jets in New England Upset

Filed under: Jets, AFC East

Immediately after the New York Jets finished off their 28-21 upset of the New England Patriots on Sunday afternoon in Foxborough, Mass., wide receiver Braylon Edwards was corralled for a postgame interview and one of the first people he thanked was former Jets defensive end Dennis Byrd. Edwards referred to the speech Byrd delivered the night before the game as a source of inspiration.

Pregame speeches the night before a game are usually reserved for Jets coach Rex Ryan. On this occasion he chose to first show highlights of Byrd's career -- before turning over the stage to Byrd himself -- with the one lowlight holding center stage. That was the play against the Kansas City Chiefs in 1992 when Byrd collided with teammate Scott Mersereau, leaving him temporarily paralyzed with a broken C-5 vertebrae. Byrd persevered and within two weeks was able to make his way to a press conference on crutches.

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Jets 28, Patriots 21: Quick Hits | Box Score | Recap
George: Rex Ryan Spins Pregame Bluster Into Stellar Performance
Blackistone: Patriots Dynasty Officially and Unequivocally Dead

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Bowls Pay Bowl Officials Big Bucks

by Brett McMurphy

Filed under: Bowl Games, Sports Business and Media, BCS Championship Game

GLENDALE, Ariz. - On Monday night, No. 1 Auburn and No. 2 Oregon play in the final bowl game of the 2010 season. The BCS national title game between the Tigers and Ducks will be the last of 35 bowl games played over the past 24 days.

There will have been a record 35 teams that won bowls -- and, yes, a record 35 teams that lost bowls -- with thousands of student-athletes enjoying what bowl supporters call "experiences of a lifetime."

"And (the bowl system) does this while maintaining college football's wonderful regular season," BCS executive director Bill Hancock wrote in a USA Today editorial last month. "And also by preserving America's unique multi-day bowl tradition that rewards student-athletes with a celebratory bowl-game week."

However, not only does it reward student-athletes with a "celebratory bowl-game week," it also rewards bowl executives. And rather handsomely.

Thirteen bowl executives make more than $240,000 annually, including three bowl officials who make more than $500,000 a year, according to salary figures obtained by the Sports Business Journal.

Outback Bowl president/CEO Jim McVay heads the list, earning $808,032 a year, followed by Allstate Sugar Bowl CEO Paul Hoolahan ($645,386) and Chick-fil-A Bowl president/CEO Gary Stokan ($504,444).

 

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