Monday, January 21, 2013

AFC CHAMPS!!!!!

THE BALTIMORE RAVENS ARE AFC CHAMPIONS!!! ON TO THE SUPER BOWL TO BEAT JIM HARBAUGH (John Harbaugh's brother) AND THE 49ERS!!!

#1. Ravens vs. Patriots
#2. Ravens to the Super Bowl
#3. Steven Ridley fumbles after big hit
#4. Sibling rivalry to play out in New Orleans
#5. Tucker confident he'd made the kick
#6. AFC Championship trophy presentation.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) - Joe Flacco outdueled Tom Brady, throwing three touchdown passes in the second half and leading the Baltimore Ravens to their first Super Bowl in 12 years with a 28-13 victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday for the AFC championship.

The win sets up the first Super Bowl coached by brothers, Baltimore's John Harbaugh and San Francisco's Jim. The 49ers won the NFC title earlier Sunday 28-24 at Atlanta.

The 49ers have been listed as 5-point favorites.

Baltimore linebacker Ray Lewis' final season will conclude in two weeks in New Orleans; he was the MVP of the 2001 game, the Ravens' only Super Bowl win.

Flacco had two touchdown passes to Anquan Boldin and one to Dennis Pitta as the Ravens outscored the Patriots 21-0 in the second half. Baltimore's defense made Brady look ordinary and stymied the league's top offense. Brady was 67-0 at home when leading at halftime.

Flacco's three touchdown passes came in just over 10 minutes in the second half. He connected with Bolden for two TDs in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter - a 3-yarder and an 11-yarder - after hitting Pitta with a 5-yard strike with 6:14 left in the third.

The Ravens (13-6) gained just 130 yards in the first half before Flacco guided them on scoring drives of 87 and 63 yards.


New England (13-5) suffered three injuries in the first half. Cornerback Aqib Talib hurt his thigh and defensive tackle Kyle Love injured his knee. The return of both starters was questionable. Backup safety Patrick Chung was helped off the field after one play.

The Patriots played without tight end Rob Gronkowski, who broke his left arm a week earlier in their 41-28 divisional win over the Houston Texans.

Stephen Gostkowski had given the Patriots a 3-0 lead with a 31-yard field goal with 6:21 left in the first quarter. But the Ravens went ahead on Ray Rice's 2-yard touchdown run with 9:28 to go in the second.

Wes Welker then scored with just over 4 minutes remaining in the half on a 1-yard pass from Brady and the Patriots increased their lead on Gostkowski's 25-yard field goal on the final play before intermission.

New England outgained Baltimore 214 yards to 130 in the half. Brady completed 14 of 24 passes for 139 yards, while Flacco went 6 for 12 for 81 yards. Neither team committed a turnover.

The scoring pass to Bolden ended a drive on which Flacco completed five of six passes, the longest a 23-yarder to Torrey Smith.

The touchdown by Pitta capped the Ravens' best drive of the game, covering 87 yards in 10 plays. It started with a 15-yard defensive pass interference penalty. Then, Flacco completed six of his other nine passes on the series. Three of them went for first downs - 22 yards to Pitta, 15 to Rice and 12 to Bolden that gave the Ravens a first-and-goal at the Patriots 10-yard line.

Flacco then connected with Pitta for a 5-yard pass and finished the drive with another 5-yarder to Pitta, who easily beat single coverage by safety Steve Gregory.

The Patriots began the scoring on Gostkowski's kick, ending a 13-play, 67-yard drive during which Brady completed five of seven passes for 55 yards.

Rice's touchdown ended a 13-play, 90-yard drive that lasted 5:51. Flacco threw completions for first downs of 17 yards to Pitta, 11 yards to Rice, 8 yards to Bernard Pierce and 25 yards to Smith. With a first down at the Patriots 15-yard line, Rice ran for 8 and 5 yards, giving the Ravens a first down at the 2.

After Flacco threw an incompletion out of bounds, Rice took a handoff, ran to the left and scored easily.

Welker's touchdown came 4:18 before intermission and capped an 11-play, 79-yard drive. He scored on a pass to the right as cornerbacks Corey Graham and Chykie Brown appeared to get crossed up on their assignments.

On the first play of the series, Baltimore's Dannell Ellerbe was penalized 15 yards for a blow to the head. Then a 24-yard completion from Brady to Welker gave the Patriots a first down at the Ravens 16-yard line.

Both teams punted on their first possession before the Patriots began their scoring drive at their 21-yard line after a 50-yard punt by Sam Koch.

The Patriots began the series with Brady's 8-yard completion to Brandon Lloyd. The pair teamed up for three completions, gaining 37 yards, on the drive.

The Ravens punted on their first three possessions in the first quarter. The Patriots punted on three of their four series, forcing Baltimore to start deep in its territory.
Associated press, Baltimore Ravens news.

You can tell by, watching video #6, there were a lot of Ravens fans at Foxborough. And when Cary Williams had that interception in the endzone, the stadium exploded in cheers. Now can the Ravens beat the 49ers?

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Team USA baseball roster revealed

Adam Jones found out who his teammates would be for team USA. I will give the names to you.

Manager
Joe Torre, former Los Angeles Dodgers manager.

Coaches
Gerald Perry, former hitting coach of the Oakland Athletics
Greg Maddux, former pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Dale Murphy, former outfielder for the Colorado Rockies
Willie Randolph, former third base coach for the Baltimore Orioles
Larry Bowa, former Los Angeles Dodgers manager
Marcel Lachemann, former pitching coach for the Colorado Rockies.

Pitchers
Jeremy Affeldt of the San Fransisco Giants.
Heath Bell of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Mitchell Boggs of the St.Louis Cardinals.
Steve Cisheck of the Miami Marlins.
Tim Collins of the Kansas City Royals
R.A Dicky of the New York Mets
Luke Gregerson of the San Diego Padres
Derek Holland of the Texas Rangers
Craig Kimbrel of the Atlanta Braves
Kris Medlin of the Atlanta Braves
Glen Perkins of the Minnesota Twins
Chris Perez of the Cleveland Indians
Vinnie Pestano of the Cleveland Indians
Ryan Volgelsong of the San Fransisco Giants

Catchers
Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins
J.P Arencibia of the Toronto BlueJays
Johnathan Lucroy of the Milwaukee Brewers

Infielders
Mark Texaria of the New York Yankees
Brandon Phillips of the Cincinnati Reds
Jimmy Rollins of the Philadelphia Phillies
David Wright of the New York Mets
Ben Zobrist of the Tampa Bay Rays
Willie Bloomquist of the Arizona Diamond Backs

Outfielders
Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers
ADAM JONES OF THE BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Giancarlo Stanto of the Miami Marlins
Shane Victorino of the Boston Red Sox

That's the roster!

Great #4.

Friends, I have bad news, The Baltimore Orioles' greatest manager ever, #4, Earl Weaver died this morning =(. He was on a cruise ship in the Caribbean, and had a sudden heart attack. Here is a link to Orioles.com: http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130119&content_id=41036310&vkey=news_bal&c_id=bal. I heard it when my dad, brother, and I were heading into the O's Fanfest (that's another story), and the guys behind us were talking and I heard one of them say: "Earl Weaver died this morning." I turned around and said "What did you say?" The guy said he was watching ESPN this morning and it came on.
R.I.P, Earl, we'll miss you.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Lakers lose!

The Heat beat the Lakers 99-90. Here are the highlights.

#1. Heat vs. Lakers
#2. Heat starting hot
#3. Steal and slam
#4. Wade finds James

L.B.J had his highest points in the season last night, 39, he also had 8 assists, and Chris Bosh had 6 steals. Yesterday was Dwayne Wade's birthday, and celebrated it by beating the Lakers! Now, let's go back home and rest until Wednesday! GO HEATLES!!!!!!

Thursday, January 17, 2013

20,000 points!

LeBron James (28) became the youngest NBA player reach 20,000 points! Here are the highlights.

#1. Heat vs Warriors
#2. LeBron's milestone assist record
#3. James finishes strong
#4. Wade to James
#5. Jackson congratulates James
#6. 20k club's youngest member

LBJ had 25 points, and 10 assists, Udonis Haslam had 10 rebounds, And D. Wade had 5 steals.

LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 20,000 points, and his Miami Heat cruised to a 92-75 victory against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night.
James finished with 25 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds before being shut down early to conserve energy as the Heat wrap up their six-game, nine-day road trip Thursday in Los Angeles against the Lakers.
Dwyane Wade had 15 points, eight boards, six assists and five steals for Miami, which looked vastly improved compared to the performances in disappointing losses in Indiana, Portland and Utah on this trip. Geoff Lepper, NBA.com news.

We have a Heated rivalry coming up tonight Heat vs. Lakers. The Lakers may have the best line-up in the NBA, but in truth, their terrible. Let's Gobeat-Kobe. GOOO HEATLES!!!!

Starting 5 for tonight's game.


Los Angeles Lakers.                                                                          MIAMI HEAT
PG: Steve Nash #10                                                                          PG: Dwayne Wade #3     
SG: Kobe Bryant #24.                                                                       SG: Mario Chalmers #15
SF: Metta World Peace #15                                                               SF: Lebron James #6
PF: Pau Gasol #16                                                                              PF: Udonis Haslam #40
C: Dwight Howard #12                                                                       C: Chris Bosh #1.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Adam Jones selected to the USA World baseball team

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones was recently selected to the USA World baseball team. Here is a link I found
http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130111&content_id=40931400&vkey=news_bal&c_id=bal.

@SimplyAJ10
Yep it's official. Get to play for #TeamUSA. Couldn't be prouder to play for my country #WBC #StayHungry IM AN AMERICAN (In Toby Kieth voice)- Adam Jones from twitter.

Divisional champs!

The kick is up and it is good! And the magical season of the Baltimore Ravens continues. TAKE THAT, BRONCOS!!!!

#1. Ravens vs. Broncos highlights
#2. Corey Graham picks off Peyton
#3. Justin Tucker 47- yard game winning kick
#4. Divisional can't miss play.
#5. Ray Rice 1- yard TD.


 DENVER -- No matter where his season or his career might end, Joe Flacco will always have The Fling.

And Peyton Manning will always have to live with that throw he made, too.

Flacco's desperation 70-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones with 31 seconds left in regulation saved the game for Baltimore in regulation, and Manning's throw across his body in overtime all but lost it for Denver.

Justin Tucker's game-winning field goal split the uprights with 13:18 remaining in the second overtime, marking the fourth-longest playoff game. Miami's win against San Diego in the 1971 divisional round still ranks as the longest playoff game. On a frostbitten day in the frozen tundra known as Denver, the Ravens got a 47-yard field goal from Justin Tucker 1:42 into the second overtime Saturday to pull off a 38-35 upset over Manning and the Broncos, extending linebacker Ray Lewis' career by at least one game.

Lewis, who led the Ravens with 17 tackles over this nearly 77-minute game, kneeled down to the ground and put his helmet on the rock-solid turf when it was over.

After he thaws out, the Ravens (12-6), 9 1/2-point underdogs for this one, will get ready for a game at either New England or Houston, who meet Sunday for the other spot in the AFC title game.

"Our team is so confident and everything went against us," Lewis said, "but we found a way to come here together and we're leaving together. It's just awesome."

This game, the longest since the Browns beat Cleveland 23-20 in 1987, was an all-timer -- up there with San Diego's 41-38 double-overtime victory over Miami for drama. But Flacco's throw might best be bookended next to one made by Roger Staubuch, who famously coined the term "Hail Mary" after his game-winning toss to Drew Pearson beat Minnesota in the 1975 playoffs.

How else to describe the Flacco throw?

On third-and-3 from his 30 with 41 seconds and no timeouts left, Flacco bought time in the pocket and saw Jones sprinting down the right sideline into double coverage. Defensive back Tony Carter slowed up and let Jones streak by him. Instead of staying step for step with Jones, safety Rahim Moore tried to leap and knock down the ball. Flacco, who throws the high, deep ball as well as anyone, got it over Moore's head and into Jones' hands.

Jones caught it and pranced into the end zone, blowing kisses to the crowd.

The Broncos chose to kneel on the ball to end regulation.

The teams punted three times to start overtime, setting up Denver on its 7-yard line. Manning was moving the Broncos along slowly and steadily. But on second-and-6 from the 38, he rolled to his right, stopped and threw across the field to Brandon Stokley. Graham stepped in front of the receiver for the interception, bookending the pick he made in the first quarter, which he returned 39 yards for a touchdown and a 14-7 lead.

The temperature at kickoff was 13 degrees, and Manning fell to 0-4 lifetime when the temperature is 40 or less. He finished 28 for 43 for 290 yards and accounted for all three Denver turnovers -- the two picks and a lost fumble that set up the touchdown that tied the game at 28 late in the third quarter.

Those mistakes nullified a record-setting day for returner Trindon Holliday, who returned a punt 90 yards for a touchdown and a kickoff 104 yards for another score. Both were playoff records for longest returns, as was the 248 total return yards he had.

All for naught.

This was, more or less, the unthinkable for the Broncos, who came in on an 11-game winning streak and the odds-on favorite, at 3-1, to win the Super Bowl, in Manning's hometown of New Orleans, no less.

Instead, this loss goes down with the most devastating in Denver history. Right there with the 30-27 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Jan. 4, 1997 -- another year when Denver looked like Super Bowl material.

But it's Baltimore and Lewis who are in the AFC title game for the second straight year.
Associated Press, Baltimore Ravens news.

When the game went into overtime, I was kneeling in front of the T.V, my fingers crossed, and my hands clasped together. I was praying the whole time. And when Justin Tucker kicked that field goal, I jumped up from my spot and did the dance LeBron James did, the night the Miami Heat won the NBA Finals. This year, we want the Houston Texans to beat the Patriots, because we don't want another rematch of the AFC Championship last year!  GOOO RAVENS!!!

Monday, January 7, 2013

Last home game

Last week, Ray Lewis annouced his retirement. He played in his last home game this Sunday. Here are the highlights.

#1. Colts vs Ravens highlights.
#2. Wild Card: Ray Lewis highlights
#3. Lewis' last dance.
#4. Wild Card can't miss play
#5. Lewis on the field for last kneeldown
#6. Ray Lewis wired for sound

The Ravens defenders crowded to the front of the pregame introductions to watch their leader, Ray Lewis, dance for the final time at M&T Bank Stadium.

They pushed and shoved each other to get the best view.

After that emotional jolt, they pushed and shoved the Colts around for the next 60 minutes.

Baltimore’s inspired defense didn’t allow Indianapolis to reach the end zone once in Sunday’s wild-card playoff game, leading the Ravens to a 24-9 victory in Lewis’ final home game.
Ryan Mink, Baltimore Ravens news

Ray Lewis’ final drive from the team hotel to M&T Bank Stadium was slower than usual.

Usually the lead-footed Lewis arrives at the stadium precisely two hours early. This time he left early, waved to fans and honked his horn along the way.

It was mostly a quiet ride along the way, Lewis said. According to his passenger, linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo, Lewis just kept repeating “Gosh.”

“The attention, the love is so overwhelming,” Ayanbadejo said. “This time, he wanted to embrace it.”

In his last home game after 17 years, Lewis soaked everything up.

Grown men were crying. Chants of “Thank You Ray” rang in the fourth quarter. The stadium was nearly packed just to watch Lewis warm up, and it exploded with excitement when he came out of the tunnel and performed his signature pregame dance.

But in usual Lewis fashion, he gave back too.

The linebacker trotted onto the field for the Ravens’ final offensive – yes, offensive – snap and danced once again near midfield for all to cherish.

That wasn’t enough.

After being mobbed at midfield, Lewis noticed how full the stadium was, how thousands of fans were still there cheering and savoring every last moment of the legend’s career. So Lewis starting trotting around the stadium, saying goodbye to the home fans one last time with one giant loop.

Lewis called the lap one of his “greatest moments.”

“I knew how it started, but I never knew how it was going to end here in Baltimore,” Lewis said. “For it to go the way it went today, I wouldn’t change anything.”

Lewis arrived at M&T Bank Stadium at 10:25 a.m. and was greeted by a couple hundred fans all shouting for him as they watched him walk from his car to his palace a final time.

Lewis went straight to the locker room to be with his teammates, but few bothered him this time, letting the linebacker soak in the moment.

(Don't mind this. It's a mistake)


That didn’t stop Lewis from his usual tradition of blessing every single one of his teammates with a dip of holy water and a bump on the top of the head.

Lewis came out of the stairwell and onto the field looking like a man possessed. He worked himself up, breathing hard in and out as he paced up and down the Indianapolis Coltssideline.

Then Lewis gathered his teammates around to deliver his staple speech. He didn’t lift his head up this time though, didn’t look his players in the eyes.

“He didn’t want anybody to see the tears in his eyes,” Ayanbadejo said. “He had his head buried.”

Lewis then jogged to the end zone where he hugged and kissed every one of his family members. His father, Elbert Ray Jackson, was stoic until that point, but he couldn’t keep his lower lip from quivering.

Lewis said he’s retiring to be with his sons, to give them a life that his father never gave him. But on this day, everything seemed to come full circle. Lewis said there was no greater moment than seeing his family waiting for him in the end zone.

“It’s the ending of a legacy and the beginning of another,” said Jackson, who approved of his son’s retirement. “It’s time for us old men to sit down and pass the torch.”

“For 17 years, I’ve been watching my dad up there,” Ray Lewis III said, pointing to the video boards. “To see him hang it up, it’s bittersweet. But he’ll be in my life, be at games more, be involved more. I like that part.”

Lewis’ pregame introduction rocked M&T Bank Stadium.

His teammates fought for position, trying to get as close as they could. Those not suited up whipped out their cameras to record the historic event. Running back Ray Rice was crying.

“I was just emotionally distraught, and it was a lot going on in my head today,” Rice said. “It was sort of like ‘Save the Last Dance.’”

Lewis opened the game at his usual position and didn’t miss a single defensive snap. He didn’t play a perfect game, as an easy interception bounced off his mitts in the first half, but Lewis led his team with 13 tackles and inspired them with his return.

He once knifed through the Indianapolis Colts offensive line to make a tackle in the backfield, and tracked down running back Vick Ballard on the edge to prevent a touchdown in the second half.

But it was less about what Lewis did on the field Sunday and more about what he’s done on it for the past 17 years.

“It was incredible, man,” cornerback Cary Williams said. “We just witnessed some of the greatest fans honoring one of the greatest players of all time. … When he came out for introductions, they showed him all the love you can show someone.”

As the clock wound down on the Ravens’ 24-9 victory, fans chanted their thanks for Lewis. He clasped his hands together and beat his chest to thank them.

Then the coaches urged Lewis to get onto the field one more time. Lewis put on his helmet, trotted onto the field and lined up behind quarterback Joe Flacco, deep in the backfield. Wide receiver Jacoby Jones dared him to dance at midfield.

One last time in this stadium – and perhaps ever – he shuffled to the right, shuffled to the left, threw open his arms and kicked his leg out with a passionate scream.

“It was really a big congratulations to our fans more than anything,” Lewis said.

“Today was about me giving everything that I had, showing people that no matter the circumstances that you may be going through, just push through it."
Ryan Mink, Baltimore Ravens news.

Let's make Payton Pey. Whoops. GO RAVENS!!!