By āNunnieā Robinson, Westside Sports Editor
Ā Ā Ā Wake Forestās upset of Duke in Winston Salem, home of the Deacons, has rekindled a dormant controversy or dilemma forĀ college coaches and administrators: what to do about court storming after major/minor upsets whether home or away. With March Madness looming, the last thing any coach needs is an injury to a key player following the end of the game, resulting from students stampeding ontoĀ the court inĀ victorious celebration, oblivious of the endless injury threats to everyone in harmās way regardless of status or position. As DukeāsĀ Kyle FilipowskiĀ attempted to leave court, he was struck on knee by a clueless reveler in a moment of delightful merriment. It has occurred many times prior with one high school athlete actually suffering paralysis but nothing concrete or definitive to end the practice has evolved. Probably because they donāt know what to do or how to remedy the problem, or perhaps it is because no one wants to.Ā Proposals have included fines and tighter security, but the will simply isnāt there yet. The only more severe occurrence because of this phenomenon other than paralysis is death! What then? Itās somewhat tantamount to mass shootings: We all know itās wrong, but no one is willing to do anything about it.
The NFL free agency period is here; running backs arenāt being handed the ball. Teams donāt value runners like Derek Henry, Saquon Barkley, Tony Pollard, Josh Jacobs or Austin Ekeler enough to use the franchise tag on them because the market for running backs has tanked. Weāll remain vigilant, seeing which team will be the first to cave and for how much. Or will the backs cave and accept the first acceptable offer they receive.Ā I do believe Dallas would be a great fit for Derek Henry.
FAMU head coach James Colzie III hasĀ promoted offensive line coach Joseph Henry to assistant head coach/offensive coordinator, his first major move since taking the reins as Rattler head coach.Ā Coach Henry stated that he was honored by the confidence placed in him by Coach Colzie and the administration to continue the tradition of past teams.
It appears sadly that high school students may soon have the same opportunity afforded to college athletes regarding NIL. The great ones will be allowed to sell their talents to the highest bidder, which is currently occurring on a massive scale, sans the money – at least as for as I know. I was told by a reliable source that Dillardās less than stellar record in football last year was due in part to somewhere in the neighborhood of 26 players leaving the program for more well-endowed greener pastures. Stop selling your souls to the devil young men!
The Miami Heat have apparently found their mojo, winning 8 of the last 10 games, the latest a convincing victory over an excellent Kings team on the road. Letās Go Heat!
Lastly, why are people so cruel. Coming off a serious heart condition, draft talks surrounding Bronny Jamesā cred as a pro prospect have taken a beating. The fact that he is back on court is a blessing in and ofĀ itself.
Enough already!!!
