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Posted on February 8, 2010 by Bengals Press Release
 The greatest athlete in the history of Buffalo State will be honored during the “Tribute to Randy Smith” at halftime of the Bengals’ men’s basketball game against Cortland on Friday, Feb. 19 at the Sports Arena.
Smith was a three-sport All-American in basketball, soccer and track from 1967-71. He died from a heart attack last June while working out. The tribute will include remarks from his former coaches and teammates as well as a proclamation by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown naming Feb. 19 as Randy Smith Day in Buffalo. Smith’s mother, wife and daughter will be on hand for the ceremony that will include a banner in his honor being lifted to the rafters.
Continue reading ‘Buffalo State Randy Smith Tribute Set For Feb 19′
Posted on February 8, 2010 by Beth Hanigan
 Former Western New York high school basketball legend Jonny Flynn has already experienced his fair share of lows in his rookie NBA season with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Not used to all the losing at Syracuse University and especially high school at Niagara Falls, Flynn saw his team come out on the losing end of 38 of 47 times with Minnesota before last week. Finally, Flynn is getting to accustomed to something new in the NBA.
Winning.
Out of nowhere his Timberwolves are on a four-game winning streak. This past Friday they defeated Dallas and came back the next night with a win against Memphis. At 13-38 the Wolves aren’t going anywhere this season or anytime soon, but getting the feel of sleeping on victories is a positive feeling.
Continue reading ‘Flynn starts to regain that winning feeling’
Posted on February 8, 2010 by Brian Galliford
Now that the Buffalo Bills have hired George Edwards as their defensive coordinator, we can start taking a look at Buffalo’s defensive personnel. As it’s been announced that the team will be making the transition to the 3-4 defensive scheme, this exercise now becomes particularly interesting, because let’s face it – the Bills are not well-equipped at the moment to run that system.
After the jump, we’ll take a look at the only two players on Buffalo’s roster that should be considered as nose tackle options.
Continue reading ‘Bills’ Roster Review: Nose Tackle’
Posted on February 8, 2010 by Patrick Moran
 The Buffalo Stampede gave Canada a good running. After defeating Quebec on Saturday the Stampede traveled Sunday to Halifax. Buffalo managed to take a 28-25 lead after the first quarter but little went right the rest of the way as their two-game winning streak was snapped, 111-90 on Sunday.
Andy Robinson had a game-high 29 points for Buffalo (3-6), who also got a season-high 22 points and 11 rebounds from former UB college star Greg Gamble.
Kevin Ross chipped in with 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Stampede, who shot 46% from the field a day after hitting on 58% of their shots.
Their next home game is a big one against the Vermont Frost Heaves this Saturday Feb. 13th at the Koessler Center. Game time is 7:30pm. There is a pre-game concert at 6:30pm by Amanda Nagurney. This is the American Cancer Society game with $1.00 from every ticket sold donated to this great cause. Tickets start at only $7.00 so bring the family to see some great pro basketball.
Posted on February 8, 2010 by Bisons Press Release
 The New York Mets announced that they have signed INF Jolbert Cabrera, INF Luis Hernandez, LHP Travis Blackley and LHP Bobby Livingston to minor league contracts with invitations to major league spring training.
The Mets also announced that LHP Adam Pettyjohn, LHP Neal Musser, INF Alejandro Machado and INF/OF Val Pascucci have been signed to minor league deals.
Cabrera, 37, spent last season in Baltimore’s system, appearing in 78 games for Triple-A Norfolk (Orioles). He hit .262 with seven home runs, 50RBI and nine stolen bases with the Tides.
Continue reading ‘Bisons to get some new talent’
Posted on February 8, 2010 by Canisius Press Report
 Canisius senior Frank Turner scored a team-high 23 points, highlighted by his runner in the lane with 1.2 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, but it was not enough to help the Golden Griffins get over the top as the Blue and Gold fell to Saint Peter’s 73-72 in overtime in the Yanitelli Center on Sunday. The loss is Canisius’ third straight and drops the team to 11-14 overall and 6-8 in the MAAC, while the Peacocks improved to 14-10 overall and 9-5 in conference play.
Canisius was down 58-49 with 3:01 left on the clock after Saint Peter’s guard Wesley Jenkins went 1-for-2 from the free-throw line. From there, Canisius would outscore Saint Peter’s by a 13-4 count that sent the game into an extra session. Julius Coles drilled a 3-pointer from the corner with 13 seconds left to cut the Peacocks’ lead to 62-60, and after Saint Peter’s missed a pair of free throws with nine ticks left in regulation time, Turner took the ball the length of the court and laid one over the front iron to knot the score at 62-62, sending the game into overtime.
Continue reading ‘Canisius downed by Saint Peters in OT’
Posted on February 7, 2010 by Patrick Moran
 The Buffalo Stampede suddenly have a little winning streak going. Buffalo traveled to Quebec Saturday night and for the second consecutive time left the floor on the winning side. The Stampede used 24 points from Kevin Ross as they upended the Kebs, 119-103.
Buffalo improved to 3-5 on the season and are 3-2 in their last five games.
Cory Herring scored 17 while Aaron Harrison chipped in with 17 points. Greg Gamble added 16 points for Buffalo, who shot 58.5% from the floor and made 6-of-12 from the three point line.
The Stampede try to pick up their third win in a row Sunday when they travel to Halifax.
Posted on February 7, 2010 by Patrick Moran
 I spoke to a source Saturday that told me although most teams would consider him a backup at this point of his career, the Buffalo Bills plan on taking a long look at soon-to-be free agent Chad Pennington as a short-term starter for the 2010 season.
“The Bills are interested in taking a look at him for sure,” the source said. “If he passes all the physical tests the plan could be to bring him in since he knows the division so well, and serve as a mentor to a rookie draft pick.”
Pennington would like the opportunity to start but his options appear severely limited. He’d like to stay in Miami to back up Chad Henne and even said on the record of the New York Daily News he’d consider coming back to the New York Jets to backup Mark Sanchez. But obviously if the Bills gave him a chance to start he’d have a huge interest in staying in the AFC East, which is where he’s spent his entire 10-year career.
Continue reading ‘Source: Pennington will be strongly considered’
Posted on February 7, 2010 by BSD Staff Reports
 Happy Super Bowl Sunday, everyone. It was a very busy Saturday for sports at all levels in Buffalo yesterday. A quick review:
Hockey:
The Buffalo Sabres lost for the third time in four nights and fourth straight game overall, getting shut out by the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-0.
Lacrosse:
The Buffalo Bandits are in huge trouble, falling to 1-5 after a 14-10 home loss to the Toronto Rock. The Bandits are at least two games out of a playoff spot with 10 games remaining.
Continue reading ‘BSD Briefs: February 7′
Posted on February 6, 2010 by Patrick Moran
 Darcy Regier thought recently that his Buffalo Sabres squad was in good shape and not likely in need of help before the NHL trade deadline. The way the team has looked over the last four nights, he may need to seriously reconsider his stance.
Buffalo lost for the third time in four nights Saturday, getting shut out 4-0 by the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets. Just 24 hours after blowing a third period lead in a home loss to Eastern Conference dweller Carolina, the Sabres couldn’t even must a goal against the Western Conference’s second-worst team.
They’re now on a season long four-game losing streak.
Continue reading ‘Sinking Sabres shut out at Columbus’
Posted on February 6, 2010 by BSD Staff Reports
 The announcement for the NFL Hall of Fame class for 2010 was just announced. As expected, Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith were elected. As most also anticipated, Andre Reed was not.
Joining Smith and Rice in this year’s class is Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, Dick LeBeau, Floyd Little and John Randle.
Most didn’t think Reed would get in this year because of the presence of Chris Carter and Tim Brown. The good news for Reed is that he outlasted either receiver. Both Carter and Brown were eliminated from consideration when the cut down went from 15 finalists to 10. Reed lasted until the final cut down to five. It’s father than he’s made it in four years.
Continue reading ‘Reed barely misses Hall of Fame election’
Posted on February 6, 2010 by David Olesky
 “We’ve hit a tough stretch and now it’s time to see how we react to it” – Lindy Ruff following an embarrassing loss to the last place Carolina Hurricanes on home ice.
What we have seen out of the Buffalo Sabres recently could be termed “a tough stretch” but prefer to call it complete failure. It’s tough to pinpoint what is going wrong because the losses have been team losses. Earlier in the season there was always someone to step up and that someone was usually Ryan Miller. While Miller hasn’t been the reason for the recent losses he deserves some of the blame for the teams recent failures.
Continue reading ‘Sabres struggles continue in Carolina loss’
Posted on February 6, 2010 by Niagara Press Report
 Rivalry games seem to bring the best out in the Niagara men’s basketball team. The Purple Eagles used a strong defensive effort throughout the contest to topple crosstown rival Canisius, 66-54, in front of a sold-out ‘Taps’ Gallagher Center on Friday night.
The Purple Eagles forced their rivals into 21 turnovers and converted that into 26 points in the victory. Niagara collected 10 steals and six different players combined for nine blocks.
But the defense really clamped down over the final 12:19 of the contest. Niagara took at 44-34 lead early in the first half, but Canisius rebounded with an 11-0 run to take a 45-44 lead at the 12:19 mark. From that point on, the Purple Eagles defense held the Golden Griffins to nine points on 4-of-15 shooting while forcing nine turnovers and blocking three shots.
Continue reading ‘Niagara gets revenge on Canisius’
Posted on February 5, 2010 by Chris Trapasso
 Lynn Swann. Steve Largent. Art Monk. Michael Irvin. All NFL wide receivers with their very own shrines on the hallowed walls of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Sport’s most distinguished fraternity has been very selective in opening their gates to wide receivers. Only 20 pass-catchers are immortalized in Canton, the smallest number of any offensive position not counting tight ends.
Some classes are remembered for same team composition. Others are remembered for honoring bitter rivals. With Jerry Rice, Cris Carter, Tim Brown and Andre Reed on the ballot for the 2010 class, a wide out breakthrough may finally be upon us.
Continue reading ‘Will Andre Reed get the call from the ‘Hall’?’
Posted on February 5, 2010 by Will Eldredge
 Going into the Olympic freeze, the Buffalo Sabres will be sitting pretty in one of the top four spots in the Eastern Conference. Ryan Miller has been the top netminder in the NHL, and his play combined with coach Lindy Ruff’s defensive system has the Sabres at third in the league in goals against.
Additionally, after a slow start to the season offensively, Buffalo has climbed to 11th overall in scoring and that number looks to improve as both Tim Connolly and Thomas Vanek have recovered from midseason slumps and are starting to find their respective games.
As a rookie, defenseman Tyler Myers leads the Sabres in ice time. The 20-year old matches up solidly against opposing best forwards and plays on both the first power play and penalty kill units. He’s also the Sabres best puck mover and Henrik Tallinder credits Myers for his transformation from the trade block to top pairing.
Continue reading ‘Comprehensive Guide to Sabres’ Needs at Trade Deadline’
Posted on February 5, 2010 by Brian Galliford
 Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve been slowly breaking down the Buffalo Bills’ roster – making our own evaluations while the Bills’ new coaching staff does likewise – in advance of Western New York’s Super Bowl, the NFL off-season.
To this point, we’ve knocked off the following positions: QB, RB, WR, TE, OT, and G/C. That’s right – we’ve made it through Buffalo’s entire list of offensive personnel. It’s time to decide precisely what we need offensively; once we look at the defense, we’ll make a similar needs list, combine the two, and whammy, we’ll be ready for action come March.
After the jump, you’ll find our three-tiered approach to identifying the Bills’ major offensive needs. We understand that you’ll feel compelled to try to re-prioritize based on your own opinions, slotting defensive needs into the list in the process, and that’s fine. We prefer to separate things like this to develop those tiers to iron out exactly what the Bills’ biggest, most critical needs are. So bear with us – we understand that what you see after the jump is (intentionally) not comprehensive.
Continue reading ‘Buffalo Bills Team Need List: Offense’
Posted on February 5, 2010 by UB Press Report
 In a cross divisional matchup riddled by 50 combined personal fouls, the University at Buffalo men’s basketball team fell to Central Michigan at the Rose Center on Thursday evening, 88-82.
The Bulls (11-9, 4-5 MAC) came out in the first half, playing an aggressive man-to-man defense, which kept the Chippewas (11-9, 6-2 MAC) in check to start the contest. In the first 12 minutes, the Bulls built a seven-point lead off a combination of costly turnovers and fouls by Central Michigan despite only shooting 35.7 percent from the floor.
The tide quickly changed in favor of the Chippewas following the game’s third media timeout at 7:51. Facing a seven-point deficit with just under eight minutes remaining, the Chippewas’ Robbie Harman assisted on an Antonio Weary dunk to start Central Michigan’s comeback. Harman followed up with a three-point bucket to pull the Chippewas within two, which brought the home crowd to its feet.
Continue reading ‘Bulls fall to Central Michigan’
Posted on February 4, 2010 by UB Press Report
 University at Buffalo senior point guard John Boyer has been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District men’s basketball team. Boyer is one of five players selected from the district and is now eligible to earn Academic All-America honors.
Boyer is having a breakout season in his first year as the Bulls’ starting point guard. He is averaging 7.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. He leads the Mid-American Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.91) and ranks second in the league in assists.
Continue reading ‘Boyer Named to Academic All-District Team’
Posted on February 4, 2010 by Brian Galliford
 Adam Schefter at ESPN is reporting that Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey has tabbed George Edwards as his defensive coordinator.
Roughly a month ago, on January 8, Edwards was named a co-defensive coordinator at the University of Florida after a five-year stint as a linebackers coach with the Miami Dolphins. Less than four weeks later, Edwards will return to the NFL.
Edwards, 43, has coached in the NFL since 1998 with four different teams. Prior to his stay in Miami, Edwards was an assistant defensive coordinator and linebackers coach with Washington before getting promoted to defensive coordinator. He then spent a year as the defensive coordinator in Cleveland before heading to Miami. Edwards got his first NFL job from none other than Chan Gailey, who hired him as his linebackers coach in 1998. Edwards spent four seasons in that post.
Prior to his NFL experience, Edwards was the defensive line coach at the University of Georgia, where he coached current Bills defensive tackle Marcus Stroud. In all, Edwards has 19 years of coaching experience.
Posted on February 4, 2010 by BSD Staff Reports
 Former Buffalo Bills and current Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly was over at NFL.com Thursday morning for a live chat. He took questions from readers and in typical Kelly fashion, was pretty forthright with his opinions.
Here are a few of the highlights. To view the chat in its entirety, click here.
A reader from New York (Sam) asked what Kelly thought about the Michael Vick to Buffalo rumors and Kelly made it crystal clear he doesn’t want him here.
Continue reading ‘Jim Kelly sounds off via nfl.com chat’
Posted on February 4, 2010 by Patrick Moran
 Last month, funded entirely by the passion—and hearts of Buffalo Bills fans, money was raised in less than four days to erect a billboard on the middle of the Buffalo Thruway calling for Bill Cowher to come to town. While ultimately Cowher decided against returning to coaching, the message didn’t go unnoticed.
The billboard made headlines on both a regional and national level. By the time the week was up, media personalities questioned Bills’ fans sanity, but never their passion.
One of the many who took notice was Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly.
“These are Bills fans. They’ll do whatever it takes. It doesn’t matter. God bless ‘em. And I understand the money over what it cost the billboard will go to Hunter’s Hope, so great job guys,” said Kelly to WKWB-TV.
He’s right… And it’s not over either.
Continue reading ‘The Hunter’s Hope Drive’
Posted on February 4, 2010 by BSD Staff Reports
 The Buffalo Stampede announced that Jim Condill has resigned his duties as the head coach of the team. After the two game road trip that took the Stampede to Rochester and Puerto Rico, Coach Condill was not feeling well. He felt that it would be best for him and the team to return to Chicago.
In his first season as coach he guided the team to a 1-5 record before his resignation. The team was playing great basketball and really starting to come together. The Stampede defeated the Manchester Millrats 114-111 this past Saturday to improve their record to 2-5.
Continue reading ‘Stampede coach Condill resigns’
Posted on February 4, 2010 by BSD Staff Reports
 The Buffalo Sabres better start praying they don’t see Ottawa in the playoff. The Senators handled them for the fourth straight time this season and ninth time in their last 10 meetings last night, 4-2. Though it’s been rare this season with the fine job he’s done, how can you not question Lindy Ruff’s thinking when he put the fourth line out in the final minute of a tie game? That’s “money” time and guys like Vanek, Roy and/or Connolly need to be on the ice.
Perhaps more disturbing was the team doing next-to-nothing sans Tyler Myers after Ryan Miller was run in the second period. Accident or not, and I don’t think it was, you don’t stand by and do nothing, especially when the culprit is a heated rival like Ottawa. Drew Stafford watched the play and other than putting his paw on someone basically froze. He should be ashamed of himself.
Continue reading ‘BSD Briefs: February 4′
Posted on February 4, 2010 by Matt Elder
 Sam Bradford (QB)-Oklahoma
6’4, 223lbs
Strengths:
Bradford has ideal height for an NFL quarterback prospect and has the solid body type he can build on to by adding more weight through strength training. He displays very good mechanics in dropping back quickly while also showing off good footwork and is able to deliver the ball very quickly even in the face of pressure.
Some of the things Bradford does well though many don’t notice is his anticipation of routes and where the receiver will be .He is able to quickly check off receiving options until he finds an open target.
Continue reading ‘NFL Draft Prospect Profile: Sam Bradford’
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