The World Cup 2010 being held in South Africa, from the 11th June untill the 11th July. The best football once every four years. Don't miss the great action!
The three Pakistan players suspended and charged by the ICC under its anti-corruption code over match-fixing allegations responded to cricket's governing body on Tuesday within the required deadline.
Tafazzul Rizvi, Pakistan Cricket Board's legal adviser, said test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir replied to the charges through a lawyer two days before the deadline was set to expire.
Test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were suspended on Sept. 2 over allegations of "spot-fixing" in a test against England last month that arose from an undercover sting by British newspaper the News of the World.
British police have allowed the trio to return home on the proviso they would return to Britain if needed.
The players will now go through an ICC hearing over the unspecified charges contained in the governing body's code of conduct.
They met with PCB chairman Ijaz Butt in Lahore on Tuesday. No details of the meeting were revealed.
There was a mixed response from the Pakistan public when the trio arrived home at Lahore airport last week. Dozens of people chanted slogans in support of Butt but others expressed their anger by waving shoes, a scathing insult to Muslims.
The players avoided facing the crowd and the media by leaving the airport through a back door.
Suspended Pakistan players respond to ICC charges video
Quarterbacks get all the cash money, babes and glory. But while a lot of them dominate on the field, they have more than their fair share of idiotic tendencies. Think about it. Half the time these guys look like complete spazzes. Here are 10 stupid things that quarterbacks do.
10 Point out the Middle Linebacker
pointing out the MLB 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesThe best part of this inane gesture is that I think half of the QBs don’t even know why they are doing it. I remember when Rex Grossman was a Bear he would do it with a puzzled look on his face. Of course, that was his look most of the time, but point is made. Next.
9 Bring Famous Hot Chicks to their Games
jessica simpson 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesLook, your whole team and your whole city is depending on you to win the game. Do you really need any added pressure? Great, now you’ll be even more tense because you want to play well for some hottie that you won’t even be dating in a month, and we get 24 cutaway shots per half showing them looking utterly bored. Tell them to watch it on TV.
8 Quiet the Crowd
quiet the crowd 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesThis is especially true for those genius signal callers that do it on the road. But it doesn’t matter where you are playing, waving your hands up and down isn’t going to make 50,000 nutty fans pipe down. You’re the QB. If you hurled breakfast through your helmet they would cheer. Instead of waving those arms around, spend another two seconds reading that defense, mm-kay?
7 Anything Peyton Manning Does On the Field
peyton manning 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesHow many times have you watched Manning go through his pre-play shtick at the line and you just wanted to rip his helmet off and slap him silly for about five minutes. Yeah, it works, but it’s aggravating and unnecessary. Half the league and most announcers think he’s just acting out there and not even changing the calls. Ten bucks says as he gets older it will land him on the injury report. And we’ll all laugh.
6 Anything Ben Roethlisberger Does Off the Field
ben roethlisberger 5 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesCrashing motorcycles, getting overly wasted, peeing wherever he sees fit and other possible illegal transgressions make Roethlisberger the current most despised player in the NFL. Even the Steelers fan are sick of him and his troubles. How is he not on the Raiders?
5 Berate the Officials
cutler refs 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesThat last call didn’t go your way so what did you do? You went all ape and argued about it. But show up the ref on national TV, maybe cuss at him and make a scene — guess what? You’re not getting any calls for the rest of the game either. Don’t be dumb.
4 Audible Into a Worse Play
audible 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesNot reserved for just the Madden dorks out there, your fave QB does it too. Your dumb QB is calling an audible to a draw play when the safety is creeping into the box. Meanwhile offensive coordinators scream Rex Ryan-like profanities from their booth, which probably smells like unbrushed teeth and fart. Unless you’re Tom Brady or something it’s probably best to go with the OC’s call.
3 Waste Timeouts
timeout 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesSo let’s get this straight — you just audibled into a run play with eight in the box but because you saw a linebacker pump his hand up and down a few times you thought it was best to go talk it over with the coaching staff? How did you get the starter’s job anyway?
2 Get Photographed While Wasted in Public
orton 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesEli Manning, Big Ben, Jay Cutler and Kyle Orton are just a few of the QBs that have been all over the Internet looking completely wasted. If you can’t handle your booze, take some of your millions and get an actual working member for your entourage — someone that is smart enough to say no to you and big enough to haul your drunk rear end into a car.
1 Nod While Talking to the OC — On the Phone
on the phone 135x95 10 unnecessary things that every QB doesIt’s not Skype, bro. You actually have to talk to the guy to let him know what you’re thinking — he can’t see you. And what you’re thinking is probably that you’re going long again next series, even though you’ve thrown three picks already. Enjoy it while it lasts, because you’ll soon be the Mayor of Clipboard City.
Matt Lo Cascio Matt Lo Cascio is a Chicago-based TV/web producer and writer that contributes to many different websites and blogs, including Chicago's MMA, Pippen Ain't Easy and Zoner Sports. His 20-foot jumper is money, even when they decide to guard him.
“Obviously it is a big game for us, being the opening game and everything, and they obviously have a lot more experience than us. But whether you’ve played 100 Tests or one provincial game, all that matters is what you bring on the day. We don’t care about the opposition, we are a young team and we will play for each other and play as a unit,” Lions captain Alviro Petersen said Thursday.
The Mumbai Indians boast the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, West Indian all-rounders Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo, JP Duminy, Indian bowling stars Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan and Sri Lankan paceman Lasith Malinga.
But only four of those will be able to take the field in accordance with IPL rules and that, as well as the Lions’ home-ground advantage, will even matters out a bit.
“I would think all the pressure is on the Mumbai Indians, they are one of the clear favourites. But I like it that way, we can just play our natural game, and I like it when people write us off. No one’s expecting anything from us and we showed in last year’s Pro20 domestic tournament that all that matters is what we do on the day and whether we play as a team,” Petersen said defiantly.
In fact, such is the confidence in the Lions camp that Petersen is already talking about getting video footage of the Victoria, Wayamba and Central Districts sides, non-IPL teams that the Lions can only meet in the semi-finals.
How the Lions handle the nerves of the big occasion on Friday night will also be a telling factor, but journeyman swing bowler Cliffe Deacon said he welcomed the idea of being nervous.
“Nerves are a funny thing, it’s always good to have some heading into a game. Just being totally laid back is not a good thing.
watch twenty20 cricket champions league live online video
Former South Africa captain Clive Rice says cricket needs an urgent “wake up call” as match-fixing allegations threaten the long-term future of the game.
In an interview with SNTV in Johannesburg, Rice said cricket's shattered image could now chase sponsors away “because they don't want to be associated with it.”
Rice revealed he had been approached to fix matches when he was a selector for the South African national team. He said he gave all the information he had to the International Cricket Council.
Rice was speaking in the wake of the scandal involving the Pakistan cricket team, three of whom have been questioned by police and suspended by the ICC after they were alleged by a British newspaper to have received money in return for bowling deliberate no-balls in the Lord's test against England -
The connection between a miffed French newspaper editor, Wolverhampton Wanderers and the Champions League Twenty20 is unlikely to be readily apparent to all But it exists nonetheless. The story starts with Gabriel Hanot, who was capped a dozen times by France as a footballer before an aviation accident forced him to limp down the less glamorous avenue of journalism.
For a time after World War II, he lived a complicated life as both a reporter and coach of the French national team. The double trouble caught up with him in 1949, when his team was thrashed by Spain. What else could Hanot do but write an editorial, unsigned, calling for his own resignation? A day later, he duly resigned.
In fact, the saga of the debt cricket owes to football began a year earlier with the Campeonato Sudamericano de Campeones, the forerunner of the Copa Libertadores. As editor of Le Equip, Hanot published enthusiastic reports from South America that waxed wonderful about the notion of a tournament that dared to pit the finest clubs from different countries against each other.
Then, in 1953, Wolves took the breathtaking step of installing floodlights at Molineux. They followed that by playing several friendlies against quality opposition. A South African XI, Argentina's Racing Club, Spartak Moscow, and Honved of Hungary all came, saw and were conquered. More significantly, they were seen to be conquered on the BBC in some of the first matches to be broadcast live on television.
In the most enduring traditions of the British press, Wolves were promptly proclaimed "Champions of the World". Across the Channel in Paris, that assertion stung Hanot's Gallic pride like a recklessly tossed gauntlet. "Before we declare that Wolverhampton Wanderers are invincible, let them go to Moscow and Budapest," he thumped out on his typewriter. "And there are other internationally renowned clubs: AC Milan and Real Madrid to name but two. A club world championship, or at least a European one -- larger, more meaningful and more prestigious than the Mitropa Cup (an earlier international event for clubs) and more original than a competition for national teams -- should be launched."
Hanot's flaming arrow found its target, and in 1955-56 the first European Cup kicked off. What we have come to know as the UEFA Champions League final now shares with the NFL's Superbowl the distinction of being the world's most watched annual sporting event, keeping more than 100 million viewers on their couches.
Most of which is probably old news to the wheelers and dealers who crafted the Champions League T20 for their remuneration and our edification. Now that cricket has engineered a mutant format of itself sexy enough to give football a run for its money in the global goggling stakes, it follows that a game that was once the preserve of amateur grandees should make it count where it counts: in the profit column.
The total prize money for the second edition of the Champions League T20 is US$6m. The winners will take home $2.5m and the runners-up $1.3m. Semi-finalists will earn $500 000 each, and teams who get no further than the group stages will bank $200 000.
But before we think that puts cricket and those who earn their crust in its service in the pound seats, consider the staggering fact that Inter Milan were paid $11.48m for beating Bayern Munich 2-0 in the 2010 UEFA Champions League final. That translates into $5.74m per goal, or $127, 556 per minute. Even teams who were trying to qualify for the competition proper had their coffers boosted to the tune of $2.68m each.
That's right, sportslovers: this year's UEFA Champions League wannabes each earned $168,000 more than the purse that will go to the team that triumphs at the Champions League T20.
And just when we thought cricket was playing ball with the big boys. In truth, the big boys won't need pointing out to anyone who saw the madding crowd of more than 33,000 that flooded the street outside the Wanderers in Johannesburg in June to watch Portugal play Mozambique in nothing more significant than a World Cup warm-up match.
Or, if you see things as Tony Irish, the chief executive of the South African Cricketers' Association, is duty bound to see them: "The money in a particular sport is a direct result of the number of people who watch it. In India, that number is huge but in other countries it's miniscule compared to those who watch football."
The Indocentric environment in which modern cricket operates and prospers is also felt in other ways. "We did about as well as we could when the television rights for the CLT20 were sold (for $975m to ESPNStar for 10 years)," Irish said, "but a lot of that money is ploughed back into India, and there are only three Indian teams in the tournament."
But spectators at South Africa's major cricket stadiums and the comparatively "miniscule" audience in India and elsewhere tuning in for the Champions League T20 has reasons to be cheerful that they are not watching football.
For a start, they are unlikely to have to endure any scoreless matches. Also, players will not feign fatal injury at the slightest real or imagined physical contact with an opponent. Anyone who treats an umpire like footballers invariably treat their referees is likely to be smacked upside the head by a large fine, a suspension, merciless booing for the rest of the tournament, or all of the above.
And, perhaps best of all, there won't be any yobs straining their ample bellies against replica Manchester United/Arsenal/Chelsea/Liverpool/Spurs/Man City football shirts as they demand bacon butties and chips 'n egg from sushi chefs. Oh, to be in South Africa now that no English teams are here.
Ah, cricket: smaller than football, but to many - notwithstanding match-fixing, rain, the unbearable dullness of most limited-overs matches, greedy administrators, egotistic administrators, power-hungry administrators, actually, administrators, period, and, of course, opinionated reporters - far closer to being perfectly formed.
SHOOT IT AND SCORE A GRAND AND A HALF- Aviva Launches Search for Funniest Away-Day Antics Video
"These allegations of corruption hurt the game of cricket," Strauss said at Durham ahead of Friday's NatWest Series match against Pakistan.
"Every one of them that comes to light damages the game. Ultimately, they are a bit of a cancer that can spread and devalue the game."
Strauss, who did not play in England's facile Twenty20 victories over Pakistan at Cardiff, reclaims the captaincy from Paul Collingwood for the 50-over series.
But although another whitewash seems the most likely outcome, Strauss was confident that it would not be because of Pakistan's lack of effort.
"Despite the allegations that have been out there I still maintain that cricket generally is a very clean sport and two teams are playing to beat the other 100 per cent," Strauss said.
"If I can allay fears, there is no chance, in my mind, that any of these games coming up will not be played in that spirit."
The paying public at Cardiff did not seem to share that view, judging by the poor turnout, though as tickets had been on sale months beforehand, it probably was not just the corruption scandal that altered perceptions.
"I think every cricketer in the world has received a short sharp slap in the face to where this game is at the moment and where it needs to be going in the future," Strauss said.
"We need to reconnect with the game for the right reasons. Cricket has survived many controversies over the years and will continue to do so. That's why we need to move on and make sure the game is very clean from now on."
After the spot-fixing scandal broke almost two weeks ago, most of England's players let it be known through the Professional Cricketers' Association, their union, that they would be unwilling to play against anyone under suspicion.
Riaz practised with Pakistan at Chester-le-Street on Thursday and was, according to Yawar Saeed, the team's manager, still available for selection. But then Kamran Akmal, another questioned by the police in the past 10 days, played in both T20 matches.
"All we know is that the International Cricket Council have sufficient grounds to suspend three players but not more at this stage," Strauss said.
"In that sense we are happy to play on. From our point of view we are looking to move on to playing cricket again. I think that's an important thing to stress.
"While obviously not diminishing the importance of these allegations, we need to make sure we get back on the pitch and make sure the game moves forward in the right way."
With only a dozen one-day matches left before the World Cup next February, England should really be formalising their line-up.
But the omission of Craig Kieswetter, after a loss of form, and the rehabilitation of Kevin Pietersen in county cricket, have allowed others such as Steven Davies and Ravi Bopara – the latter will possibly be preferred to Luke Wright – to show their worth.
Davies is the latest in a long line to try to make a success of the hitting role at the top of the order. Making the most of the powerplays will be crucial in a World Cup played on the benign pitches in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, but it is a very different matter in England, especially in September.
He may also face something he has never done before, a 7ft tall bowler. Mohammad Irfan will probably not be mistaken by tourists hoping to glimpse the Angel of the North, but he towers above most that have played the game.
In normal circumstances he would not play on Friday, having arrived in the country only on Wednesday, but these are not normal times, even for Pakistan.
The visitors could certainly do with a lift following their abject performances at Cardiff.
In theory, and providing Riaz's predicament does not diminish their morale further, the extra overs available should at least allow their batsmen to play an innings instead of the unseemly hack and hope they were guilty of in the T20.
"We were not up to the mark in the last two T20s," Waqar Younis, Pakistan's coach, said. "It has been tough for the last 10 days and what's been happening at home with the floods.
"But we are a tough nation when it comes to this sort of situation. We have to make sure that we stay focused on the game and deliver the goods in these five ODIs."
Waqar also confirmed that the team were trying to cope by not discussing the allegations. "If you keep talking about these things your focus goes off track.
"This is a new series, a new ball game. If we can win this series things will sort of mellow down a little bit and it's important that we should play good cricket because of what is happening in Pakistan."
Former Liverpool and Lyon boss Gerard Houllier has been appointed the new manager of Aston Villa.
The 63-year-old left the post of technical director at the French Football Federation to return to English football after six years away.
He takes over from caretaker Kevin MacDonald, who had been in charge since Martin O'Neill left on 9 August.
Chief executive Paul Faulkner said: "He [Houllier] understands the ethos of our club and shares our core values."
No announcement has yet been made on the future of MacDonald who stepped up from his position of reserve-team coach when O'Neill left before the start of the season.
Phil Thompson, Houllier's number two at Anfield, had been linked with the assistant manager's role at Villa Park but has decided to continue working as a television pundit.
The length of Houllier's contract has also not yet been revealed.
He will be formally presented to the media on Friday, with his first game in charge away to Stoke on Monday, 13 September.
"Two of the key qualities which we identified as being of crucial importance in our search for the new manager were experience of managing in the Premier League and a strategy for building on the existing strengths in our current squad," stated Faulkner.
"Gerard Houllier comfortably satisfies these criteria."
Houllier admitted it had been a "very difficult decision" to leave his post in France but he was "very happy and proud to join this great and historic club.
"I could not turn down the opportunity to manage a club whose approach, both on and off the pitch, I have long admired," he said.
"Aston Villa is one of England's biggest clubs and has an amazing set of fans.
"This is a tremendous challenge and one I am very much looking forward to taking on."
Houllier has an impressive record in club management, having led Liverpool to the FA Cup, League Cup and Uefa Cup Treble in 2001.
After leaving Anfield, he managed Lyon between 2005 and 2007, winning two league titles.
His other former clubs include Paris St Germain and Lens, and he also coached France between 1992 and 1993, when he failed to secure qualification for the 1994 World Cup finals.
The Pakistan Cricket Board had tried to fight the case for the three cricketers accused of spot-fixing, sending a letter to the ICC after the governing body suspended the players four days after the News of the World sting operation.
In his first statement following the suspension of Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt said: "We wrote a letter to ICC on behalf of the players but they want individual replies from the players which will be given to them in the allowed 14 days."
Butt arrived in Lahore airport on Wednesday after the controversy and was met with a hostile reception and he had to be eventually led away by security. "Investigations are under way and police has yet to charge any player," Butt said. "We are very concerned over the allegations and since we too have zero tolerance against corruption, we also want this to finish soon.
"We are really worried about the matter and if any player is found responsible then we will take strict action," he added
The PCB chief had initially learnt about the spot-fixing incident when he was called by the team manager Yawar Saeed on the fourth day of the Lord's Test, when the News of The World sting was released. Butt said he was told by Saeed that, "police have warrants to search the players' rooms. On Friday the players were interrogated for nine hours but no charges are levelled against them."
The ICC acted last Thursday, five days after the initial story in which the NOTW alleged that Salman Butt, Amir and Asif were part of a plan arranged by the target of the sting, Mazhar Majeed, to bowl deliberate no-balls.
In the days that have followed, there was a growing unease within the PCB with the ICC's "haste" at handling the controversy, particularly the speed with which the governing body suspended the three players.
In the meetings which followed the release of the NOTW video tape, immense pressure was put on the PCB by the ICC and ECB to suspend the players temporarily so that the limited-overs leg of the tour could continue relatively untainted. Butt refused to do so, telling ESPNcricinfo he would not suspend any player without evidence.
Pakistan's top diplomat in the UK was also involved in the discussions at the end of which it was agreed to withdraw the players, stating that the players had "voluntarily" agreed to pull themselves out of the tour under the mental strain of the allegations.
Later that evening, however, after a number of meetings between Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, Butt and Wajid Shamsul Hasan, the Pakistan High Commissioner in the UK, the ICC decided to act and suspend the trio anyway. Lorgat later admitted the ICC sped up its role after hearing Ijaz Butt say the players would not be suspended. The move incensed Hasan who claimed Lorgat had given an assurance that no such action would be taken. Lorgat denied this, saying he had informed Ijaz Butt and Hasan.
One official, however, said that the ICC was wrong to take such action. "We believe they acted in undue haste over this and certainly we believe that they did it to show that they were doing something, to be seen to be taking action rather than taking the right action," the official, who is familiar with the proceedings of the case, told ESPNcricinfo.
Part of the discontent stems from the ICC not having shared any evidence with the PCB when the suspensions were first handed out. But the PCB is also concerned about the suspensions because police investigations are still underway. "No charges have been put forward by the police at all yet and their investigation is still happening so why couldn't they just wait?" the official said.
"The players have to respond now to those ACSU charges while the police work is still going and it's just putting too much strain on the players who have not yet been found guilty of anything. This could be a double jeopardy situation, where they are being punished for the same offence twice."
The entire crisis is likely to exacerbate what seems, in any case, to have been an uneasy relationship under Butt's tenure. Before this, the ICC and PCB clashed most notably when Pakistan's right to host matches at the 2011 World Cup was taken away following the terror attacks on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore. The Pakistan board threatened legal action against the ICC but the two sides eventually came to a compromise.
These aren't necessarily the top pro prospects, and they might not even be among the most talented players, but they're going to be the most influential and most productive stars of the 2010 season. These will be the difference makers, the playmakers, and the award winners. In other words, these are the players everyone will care about.
Kaepernick hasn’t led the team to many big wins and he hasn’t come through in the bowls, but he has been one of the nation’s top dual-threat playmakers with two straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons while completing 56% of his career throws for 7,076 yards with 61 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. When he’s on a roll, he’s unstoppable rushing for 240 yards and three touchdowns against UNLV a few years ago and ripping off 230 yards and four scores against Idaho while running for five 100-yard games on the year. Deadly on the move, he has rushed for 39 career scores averaging 6.8 yards per carry. How accurate was he last year? He threw just two interceptions over the final 11 games. A Vince Young type of quarterback, he’s 6-6 and 215 pounds with a slippery running style and a live arm with a major-league fastball. But for all the stats and for all the amazing things he has done over his phenomenal career, it’s all about coming up with the big wins in his final year. Ryan Mallett, Jr. Arkansas
Mallett might not have gone No. 1 overall to St. Louis in the 2010 NFL Draft, but he would’ve been considered. At 6-7 and 238 pounds, he has tremendous size, a huge arm, and is a pure pro bomber who’s expected to take Arkansas to a whole other level. After starting out his career at Michigan, and getting a few starts as a true freshman completing 61-of-141 passes for 892 yards and seven scores, the hiring of Rich Rodriguez meant the end of Mallett’s time in Ann Arbor. A perfect fit for Bobby Petrino’s offense, he has all the throws in the bag and is a fiery leader who’s the unquestioned main man in the offense. Ryan Mallett
Ryan Mallett Al Messerschmidt
Expected to shine right away after getting a year off after transferring, he blew up from the start highlighted by a 409-yard, five touchdown day in the loss to Georgia and continued to roll from there. He finished the season as the SEC’s best passer completing 56% of his throws for 3,624 yards and 30 touchdowns with seven interceptions, and while he had his problems against the teams with the better pass rushes, he managed to fight back from adversity to make big plays. He might have completed 12-of-27 passes against Florida, but he had the Hogs in the game up until the end. However, consistency will be a key and he needs to be far better against the top teams. Against Alabama, Florida, Ole Miss, LSU, and in the bowl against East Carolina, he completed 68-of-171 of his throws (just 39.7%) and with five touchdown passes while never throwing for more than 254 yards.
These aren't necessarily the top pro prospects, and they might not even be among the most talented players, but they're going to be the most influential and most productive stars of the 2010 season. These will be the difference makers, the playmakers, and the award winners. In other words, these are the players everyone will care about.
CB Ras-I Dowling, Sr., Virginia
While there are key departures, such as CB Chris Cook, the Cavaliers return the core of a defensive backfield that was among the ACC’s best in 2009. Leading the way for one final year will be the 6-2, 205-pound Dowling , a next-level cornerback and two-time all-league selection. He possesses a tremendous combination of size, closing speed, and natural instincts, shutting down passing lanes and stepping up in run defense. Voted the team’s most improved player a year ago, he had 58 tackles, two tackles for loss, three picks, and eight pass breakups.
QB Kellen Moore, Jr. Boise State
It’s time to start including Moore in the discussion among the best players in America. Everyone wants to talk about Boise State being a buster in the BCS and possibly the national championship, but Moore could also be a bit of a trailblazer (at least since Ty Detmer won 20 years ago) and bring the Heisman to a non-BCS team.
After setting the NCAA record for completion percentage by a freshman (69.4%), the lefty was even more magnificent last year completing 69.3% of his throws for 3,536 yards. After throwing ten picks in 2008, he threw just three last season along with 39 touchdowns (to 25 in 2008). But his great year was more than just about stats; he always seemed to generate the foot-on-the-throat drive to put teams away and came up with the scores needed to prevent any legitimate threats. At 6-0 and 186 pounds he’s not big, has decent arm, and he’s not all that mobile, but he’s accurate and he knows how to get things moving. The Washington high school record holder for touchdown passes (173) is ultra-efficient, mistake-free, and as cool as they come. A 26-1 career record isn’t bad, either.
These aren't necessarily the top pro prospects, and they might not even be among the most talented players, but they're going to be the most influential and most productive stars of the 2010 season. These will be the difference makers, the playmakers, and the award winners. In other words, these are the players everyone will care about.
QB Terrelle Pryor, Jr. Ohio State
Now the expectations go from hoping he’ll take another step forward to hoping he can win a Heisman while leading Ohio State to the national title. Pryor hasn’t been the be-all-end-all transcendent player that many thought he’d be right away after being everyone’s No. 1, can’t-miss recruit in the 2008 class, but he has been good enough to be the starting quarterback on two BCS bowl teams and the reason why the team won the 2010 Rose Bowl. At 6-6 and 233 pounds he’s big, really big, and tough to bring down with just one defender. Extremely fast and elusive for a player of his size, he ran for 779 yards and seven touchdowns last year with 74 yards against Michigan and 72 against Oregon in the Rose Bowl despite playing on a banged up knee. While he might never be Peyton Manning as a passer, he’s improving enough to be accurate and effective on midrange throws while making defenses worry a bit more on the deep balls. At his best when on the move, he’s great making plays out of the pocket while being able to make something out of nothing when the play breaks down.
He appears to be working his way up in the logical progression of a great college quarterback’s career having relied on his raw skills as a freshman and expanding his passing abilities last year, completing 57% of his throws for 2,094 yards and 18 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. He completed 61% of his passes for 1,311 yards with 12 touchdowns and four interceptions as a freshman, but he wasn’t allowed to do anything that wasn’t ultra-safe. After a year and a half of starting experience, he’s more in command of the offense now, appears to be quicker with his decision making, and he’s ready to open up the attack more to unleash his tremendous arm on more downfield throws. Work-level isn’t an issue; he has had problems with a sore arm from overuse working on throw after throw. Toughness isn’t an issue; he played hurt at the end of last year and underwent minor knee surgery to clean everything up. This is his team and his season for the taking, and for all the hype and all the promise, he appears ready to be the player everyone has been waiting for. The pressure has gone up ten-fold on his career and the success of the team rest squarely on his shoulders.
RB Ryan Williams, Soph., Virginia Tech
With Darren Evans out for the 2009 season, the ground game failed to skip a beat with Williams running 293 times for 1,655 yards and 21 touchdowns. He also caught 16 passes for 180 yards and a score in an epic debut. A solid 5-10, 211-pounder, he wastes no movement getting to the hole and has the wiggle and game-breaking speed to cripple defenses in the open field.
RB Dion Lewis, Soph. Pitt
There’s no way Pitt was going to adequately replace LeSean McCoy in such short notice. Yeah, right. Good luck convincing Lewis, who authored one of the great true freshman seasons ever for a back. Almost completely bypassed out of high school because of his 5-8, 195-pound frame, he erupted for 1,799 yards and 17 touchdowns on 325 carries. He added 25 catches for 189 yards and another score in an unexpected national coming-out party. Forget the size thing. He runs much tougher than expected, and has the vision and cutback ability to pick up yards even when it appears there’s nothing there.
