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• Raiders expect Walker to be ready for training camp
• Will NFL still be fun without Favre, Strahan and Sapp?
• Manning says Giants goal is not to repeat, but to get better
• Patriots player arrested, turns informant
• Redskins sign Schweigert
• Mangini, Baker keep in touch while tight end stays away
• Wayne hoping to improve on big numbers
• Kraft feels vindicated by Boston Herald apology
• Raiders rookies try to impress coaching staff
• HBO, NFL Films to tackle Cowboys training camp again
• Broncos hire Xanders, promote Jim Goodman
• Niners give thumbs-up to headsets for defensive players
• Police: Colts’ Harrison interviewed about Philly shooting
• Texas Football - The Spread Offense
• Not Your Ordinary Joe - Buccaneers Sign Linebacker Leon Joe
• Coaching to Perfection
• Being a “Contrarian” when Coaching Youth Football
• Peterson, Vikes notch fifth straight win
• PlayOff Time
• Seattle 24, San Francisco 0
• An Introduction to the 49ers SF
• College Football’s Heart-Stoppers
• Teach Your Football Wide Receivers to Get Open and Score Points In Bunches
• NFL Coaches on the Hot Seat (Who Goes, Who Stays)
• Planning a Football Party

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John Beck on Deck

There are fewer teams in the NFL with a more uncertain future than the Miami Dolphins. Miami, a team that has been neither horrible or wonderful over the past few seasons, has struggled at the quarterback position. After trading for Dante Culpepper - a former Minnesota Vikings star - the Dolphins seemed to have found the answer. Until, that is, this answer returned to a question when the season began. Not only did Culpepper start out with mediocre performances, but he finished on the injured reserve list.

The occurrences of last season left the Dolphins without a quarterback of the future, forcing them to draft a person to fill the role. After receiving criticism for passing on Brady Quinn, the Dolphins took John Beck. Beck, the former Brigham Young quarterback, was taken by the Miami Dolphins in the 2007 draft. Chosen with their second pick, Beck was 40th overall.

Born was born in Hayward, California, Beck attended high school in Mesa Arizona where he was a football star. During his junior and senior years, he quarterbacked his team to a 25-2 record, including a state championship. This led to a large amount of honors including first team all-state, USA Today All American honorable mention, Offensive Player of the Year, Outstanding Male Scholar Athlete honors and the Arizona High School Football Player of the Year.

Beck was recruited by BYU and began his career as a true freshman. During his sophomore year, he earned second team All-Mountain West honors and broke both the BYU single game sophomore record and the Mountain West Conference record with 67 pass attempts against UNLV. This season he also averaged 233 yards a game, passing the three thousand yard make. In the game against San Diego, Beck received a quarterback rating of 204.8.

During his junior year, Beck saw his stock take off as he received All-Moutain West Conference first team honors, and team Most Valuable Player. Ranked fifth nationally, Beck averaged 309 yards per game. He was ranked as one of the top 30 players in the Mountain West Conference by College Football News and ranked in the top-40 quarterbacks in the US by College Football Preview.

In Beck’s senior year, ESPN ranked him as the second best quarterback in the nation for efficiency. After leading BYU to a 10-2 record, Beck was a finalist for the Unitas Golden Arm Award and was even mentioned in some Heisman conversations. Beck’s senior year, and his collegiate career, ended when BYU beat Oregon 38-8 in the Las Vegas Bowl. During this game, Beck threw for 375 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 26 yards and one touchdown.

As for this season, Beck will probably see little - if any - playing time. Once his Rookie season is under his belt, he might surprise some people, leaving Dolphin fans to ask “Brady who?”

NFL Players And Money

One of the questions people always ask me about being an NFL player is, “what is it like making so much money at such a young age?”

I have to say that it is very difficult to go from being young and having no money to being young and a millionaire because you do not know how to be financially responsible. It’s just like winning the lottery, and as you know from reading about lottery winners, most lottery winners go broke within 10 years after winning the lottery. Well, it is not that much different with professional sports players. The reason for this is most professional athletes, and lottery winners, were never taught money management skills. Going from being broke one day to being a millionaire the next day is a huge change in your life, mostly because once you have money, everybody wants you to give it to them, and most of the time you do.

I came from a single family home without a father, which is something many professional NFL players have in common. I am also African American and my family did not have a lot of money, which is also very common among NFL players. Because of this, I was never taught how to manage money responsibly and plan for my future. I went from being broke one day to being drafted into the NFL and becoming a millionaire.

A huge problem with being young and having a lot of money is the pressure by just about everybody including fellow players to spend a lot of money very quickly. When you are rich, everybody wants your money, especially your family and friends. My mother, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, etc. all wanted to borrow money from me. And of course I gave it to them. Then, you have girlfriends and wives who want you to buy them lots of expensive presents like cars, jewelry and clothes because you are rich and they want to show off to their friends. You also have charities, investors, and businesspeople all asking for your money—and you end up giving it to them.

But possibly the worst of all is the other players because when it comes to money it is the blind leading the blind. We all spend our money as if it will never run out because we are uneducated in financial responsibility. For example, for you to be cool and respected by the other players, you have to keep up with them. So, if one player buys a new SUV, you want to buy one too. I mean, you can’t be an NFL player and drive a normal car like a Honda Civic. You have to drive an expensive Hummer, Cadillac Escapade, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, etc.

You also have to have a huge expensive house. All the other players do and if you just live in an average house, they look down at you. So, we spend a fortune buying huge houses for ourselves and for our parents that we do not need. And of course there is the jewelry. We spend so much money on jewelry it is insane. It is nothing for a player to spend $100,000 a year or more buying jewelry, and that is just for us. That does not include all the jewelry we buy for our family, wives, and girlfriends. It is all extremely irresponsible. But, when you have so many people putting pressure on you every day to buy things and keep up with the other NFL players, it becomes much easier to say yes than to say no, even as you are watching all of your money disappear.

Another problem is as a wealthy NFL player, you are expected to flip the bill for everything. Whenever you go out to restaurant, you are the person who pays for everybody. And, when you go out with other players or your buddies, it is always to a fancy club where we go to the VIP section and spend thousands of dollars on fancy champagne and drinks—for everybody. I have known players who have spent over $25,000 in one night at a club. And then they go and do it over and over so they can be the “big man.”

Another problem NFL players have is women who are after us for our money and our status. And many of these women are gold diggers. If we were not rich athletes these beautiful women would probably not look twice at us. But now that we are rich and well known, women chase us constantly. This almost always leads to us marrying a woman we shouldn’t marry and then getting divorced after a couple of years and losing a large percentage of our money in the divorce. I made this mistake myself and it cost me dearly and still costs me.

In close, being a wealthy athlete is much more difficult than people think because there is so much pressure on us to spend our money as quickly as possible. Money magnifies problems, it does not eliminate them as most people think it does.

NFL Training Camp - This Is Where Football Begins

As a former NFL player, NFL training camp is where the real work begins, especially for rookies and un-drafted athletes who want to try and make a team.

Prior to training camp, you may have been on vacation or spending time with friends and family. But the fun is over the moment you are given your training camp room key. This is where the sweat and tears start. This is where nervous butterflies give you a constant uneasy feeling in your gut.

You start training camp by meeting with other players and coaches. There is a nervous excitement in the air and it seems that all the players have some jitters. Your mind plays games against your confidence and you find yourself asking questions like, “Am I really good enough to play in the pros?” “What will I do if I don’t make the team?” “What if I can’t remember the plays we are taught?” “What happens if I get sick or injured?”

Then you get your schedule and it tells you where to go and meet. The schedule tells you that your first meeting is a team meeting with the head coach, staff, trainers, and the team owner. This is it. Training camp has officially started. It’s time to get to work and prove yourself. Psych yourself up. You are the best. You are going to do great and impress everybody. You are going to make the team and become a starter. You are a professional football player!

The schedule says that practice starts tomorrow. Morning practice is at 9:00 am to 11:30 am. Lunch is noon to 2:00 PM. At 2:30 PM to 3:00 PM we watch film. Our second practice is from 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM.

For the first three days of camp, practice is a light practice with shorts and a helmet. This is to get your legs under you. On the fourth day of camp you get to put on pads. This is when the excitement begins and the butterflies go wild. You are so anxious to hit somebody. It feels like it has been forever since you were last on the field and ready to play. This is the toughest day for you. Your body has to get accustomed to the pads that weigh 70 lbs. Your body suffers as you go through practice drills while wearing these heavy pads in 100 plus degree heat. This is when you find out if you are in shape or not. Can you survive it? Are you going to get sick? Are you going to look weak in front of the other players? Be a man! You can handle it. If others can do it you can too. It’s mind over matter. Do it!

Coaches make day four with full pads a very physical day. This is to break players in on wearing pads in heat. This is where there coaches see which players have the strength and stamina to compete in the NFL. This is also where coaches see which players take being an athlete seriously and keep their bodies in top physical condition and which players are lazy and don’t work out.

After afternoon practice players hit the showers and the cold tubs. Cold tubs are filled with ice water. They feel like hell but they help an aching swollen body recover like nothing else.

After you clean up, it’s time to have dinner from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM. But the day is not over yet. You have film to watch from 8:00 PM to 9:30 PM. Snacks are at 10.00 PM and curfew is at 11:00 PM. At 11:00 PM you better be in your room and ready for bed. If not, you face the wrath of the coaches, and the last thing you want to do is make your coaches mad. Coaches do not like problem players, especially rookies and walk-ons. There’s too much talent out there to put up with trouble makers. Get your butt to bed.

This is your life every day for the next 6 weeks. Do you think you can handle it?

Michael Bush 2007 Draft Day Picks

Michael Bush was born in Louisville, Kentucky on June 16, 1984. Bush is a powerful running back who weighs in at more than 250 pounds, and stands at 6 foot 3 inches tall. He has a rare combination of speed, size, and strength that has made him a force on the football field since his early years.

During his high school career Bush was a do it all type player. Throughout his four years he played positions including quarterback, running back, defensive back, defensive end, safety, linebacker, and wide receiver. As a senior at Male High School Bush held down the quarterback position and led his team to the state title. One game in particular stands out in Bush’s high school career. As a senior he matched up against the team of his future teammate at the University of Louisville, Brian Brohm. During this game Bush ran for 116 yards, threw for 468 yards, and accounted for seven touchdowns. In a game that many think is the best ever in the state of Kentucky, Bush’s team came out on top 59-56.

After high school Bush took his game to the University of Louisville where he began to play running back once again. The 2005 season was a breakout year for Bush when he ran for 1,143 yards and scored 23 touchdowns. His 23 scores were enough to lead the entire NCAA Division I in scoring. Unfortunately, during the first game of the 2006 season Bush broke his right tibia, and never returned to the field. Before this injury he had scored three touchdowns and tallied 128 yards on the ground.

Although Bush only had the chance to showcase his talent for one full season, he definitely left his mark on the program and is looking forward to doing so with future teams as well.

After the conclusion of the 2006 season Bush declared himself eligible for the 2007 NFL Draft. He is looking to pick up where he left off before being injured.

Football Game Tickets

The Seattle Seahawks ticket is one of high demand ticket sales with its great playoff in 2006 and a history of sold out sales. 2007 is even a more exciting season with QB Matt Hasselbeck and with outstanding additions like DT Brandon Mebane, DB Josh Wilson, DE Patrick Kerney and SS Brian Russel. Another of the high selling tickets is the Indianapolis Colts. The team is based in Indianapolis, Indiana and founded in 1953. In 1958, the Colts (coached by Weeb Ewbank, a Hall of Famer) defeated the New York Giants in the NFL championship game and became the “Greatest Game Ever Played”. And off course not to mention, they were the glorious champion of the 2006 season. The Steel City’s Pittsburgh Steelers failed to reach the playoff last season with their quarterback Ben Roethlisberger suffering from injuries. But the Steel City is more than ready and the Pittsburgh Steelers tickets are getting more and more sales. It is well known that the wait list for Steelers season tickets will take you 10 years to reach the top of the list, unbelievable but true. The NFL playoff schedules can be easily found on the Internet. Just go to google and search for NFL schedule and you will find season-by-season schedules. Here is a snapshot of the January to February 2008 playoffs.

• Wild Card Weekend

Sat Jan5: AFC/NFC Wild Card Game (NBC)

Sun Jan 6: AFC/NFC Wild Card Game (CBS/FOX)

• Divisional Playoffs

Sat Jan 12: AFC/NFC (CBS/Fox)

Sun Jan 13: AFC/NFC (CBS/Fox)

• Conference Championships

Sun Jan 20: AFC/NFC (CBS/Fox)

• Super Bowl XLII

Sun Feb3: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

AFC vs NFC championship (Fox)

• AFC NFC Pro Bowl

Sun Feb10: Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii

AFC vs NFC (Fox)

The College Football schedules are also readily available in the Internet. A lot of websites feature the schedule for viewer’s reference. Here is the snapshot of the January 2008 schedule.

Jan 1 11am: Outback Bowl (Tampa) – Southeastern vs Big Ten

Wisconsin vs Tennessee

Jan 1 11:30am: Cotton Bowl (Dallas) – Big 12 vs Southeastern

Missouri vs Arkansas

Jan 1 1pm: Capital One Bowl (Orlando) – Big Ten vs Southeastern

Michigan vs Florida

Jan 1 1pm: Gator Bowl (Jacksonville) – Big 12 vs Atlantic Coast

Texax Tech vs Virginia

Jan 1 4:30pm: Rose Bowl (Pasadena) – Big Ten vs Pacific-10

Illinois vs USC

Jan 1 8:30pm: Sugar Bowl (New Orleans) – Western Athletic vs Southeastern

Hawaii vs Georgia

Jan 2 8pm: Fiesta Bowl (Glendale) – Big East vs Big 12

Oklahoma vs West Virginia

Jan 3 8pm: Orange Bowl (Miami) – Big 12 vs Atlantic Coast

Virginia Tech vs Kansas

Jan 5 12pm: International Bowl (Toronto) – Big East vs Mid-American

Rutgers vs Ball State

Jan 6 8pm: GMAC Bowl (Mobile) – Mid American vs Conference USA

Bowling Green vs Tulsa

Jan 7 8pm: BCS Championship (New Orleans) – Southeastern vs Big Ten

LSU vs Ohio State

Again you can easily get the schedules at ESPN and other sports websites. If you want to read more on the college football teams, well there are many forums and blogs for you to join and chat with the college football fanatics.

Hut…Hut…Like it’s Game Time - The NFL Football is Coming to Your Party!

“With 32 teams spread throughout the nation, the NFL is everywhere. Founded in 1920, this relative newcomer is now the most watched professional sport in America. So gather some snacks, call your friends and sit back to watch the spectacle unfold on the gridiron. To keep even the most casual fan entertained, try adding these NFL themed games to your party.

Football Square Off
This fun football game is sure to keep everyone mindful of the score no matter which teams are playing. Before your guests’ arrival, draw a ten by ten grid on a large piece of pasteboard or paper. As your guests arrive, have them select one of the one hundred squares and write their name or initials in that square. If necessary to fill the one hundred squares, each guest may fill in more than one square. When the grid is full, randomly assign numbers zero through nine at the top of the columns and to the left of the rows. At the top, write “Home.” Write “Away” to the left of the rows. At the end of each quarter, a winner will be determined. To do this, take the last digit of the home team’s score. This is the winning column. The last digit of the visiting team’s score is the winning row. Where the winning row and column meet is the winner for that quarter! Have some football themed party favors or gifts on hand to give to your winner. For more fun, consider a silly team hat or shirt to wear until the next winner is selected. To spice things up, consider setting a timer to determine winners rather than at the end of quarters so that guests are not aware of when the next selection will be!

Find a Seat!
This fun, football inspired game can be played even while the big football game is still on! Seat your guests in straight rows in front of the television to watch the game. Now have your guests stand up. As long as the ball is not in play, they should move to their right towards the end of their row. When they reach the end of their row, they must run around to the left end of the row behind them. The person exiting the right end of the last row must then move to the left end of the front row. However, as good fans, they must be in their seats when the ball is snapped. When the ball is down again, they must get up and continue moving. This time, remove one of the seats. When the ball is snapped, one fan is left without a seat and “thrown out of the stadium.” The game continues until only one fan is seated in front of the big game.

With games on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays; football is fast becoming America’s favorite sport. This game is best watched with other fans, though. So, call your friends, stock up on snacks and make your party a real touchdown with these NFL themed party games.