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for August 2010
 Since he’s entered the National Football League, Aaron Maybin has been an easy target. Unfair as it may be that he’s so harshly judged less than a game into his second NFL regular season, Maybin could be the poster child for all the erroneous moves the Buffalo Bills front office has made this decade.
There’s no easy way to say it—the organization has been mostly a league bottom-feeder for several years running, and while the reasons have mounted, none are greater than their inability to find impact players at the top of the draft. Time and time again Tom Donahoe, Marv Levy, Tom Modrak and Dick Jauron used their powers and influences to get the players they wanted early– and without recent exception the moves have backfired.
Since 2002 with the fourth overall selection of Mike Williams, the Bills first round picks almost read like an encyclopedia of exactly what NOT to do when building a winning football team. Williams was a calamity and J.P. Losman (2004) was even worse due to Donahoe trading up into the first round to get him. Donte Whitner went in the top 10 in 2006 yet has barely been better than backups George Wilson or Bryan Scott. Marshawn Lynch (2007) will be the team’s third running back in the rotation on opening day in a few weeks, provided Fred Jackson’s hand is recovered enough to play. Leodis McKelvin (2008) showed great promise as a rookie, but missed most of last year with a leg injury and has yet to return to form this preseason, though signs are pointing the way of improvement. He’s in a battle with Drayton Florence for the right to start alongside Terrence McGee.
Continue reading ‘Maybin Makes Most Of An Opportunity’
 The University at Buffalo has announced that men’s basketball player John Boyer and women’s diver Meili Carpenter have been selected as the 2010 Student Athletes of the Year. The pair were honored at Sunday’s Student Athlete Orientation Day.
Boyer, the point guard on UB’s men’s basketball team, led the Bulls to an 18-12 record in 2009-10 and had a breakout season in his senior campaign. He led the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.70), the first UB basketball player in its Division I era to lead the nation in a statistical category. He averaged 7.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game. Boyer finished the season with 159 assists – the fifth best single season total in school history and the most assists by a UB player since the Bulls joined the Mid-American Conference in 1998. Off the court, Boyer was also named by the league’s Faculty Athletic Representatives to the Academic All-MAC team and he earned recognition to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District men’s basketball team in January.
Continue reading ‘Boyer, Carpenter Named UB Student Athletes of the Year’
 The Buffalo Bills have made three moves to get the 75-man roster limit before Tuesday’s deadline by cutting offensive tackle Kyle Calloway, defensive tackle Lonnie Harvey and wide receiver Aaron Rhea.
Of the three, only Calloway is a surprise and a mild one at that. The Iowa standout was drafted in the seventh round by Buddy Nix and appeared targeted at having an excellent chance of making the roster, but was outplayed so far this summer by multiple backups, including undrafted free agent Cordaro Howard. With Jamon Meredith and Kirk Chambers poised to back up starters Demetrius Bell and Cornell Green, not to mention injured fifth rounder Ed Wang on board, there was no room for Calloway.
Harvey did nothing to stand out in Bills camp in his limited opportunities, never seriously joining the tackle rotation conversation of Kyle Williams, Terrel Troup and John McCargo.
Continue reading ‘Bills Cut Three To Get Down To 75 Man Limit’
 WKBW-TV is the first to report that former Buffalo Sabres forward Tim Kennedy will sign a one-year deal to play for the New York Rangers in 2010-11.
Kennedy, the South Buffalo native who was one of the better forwards for the Sabres in the playoffs last year, was surprisingly waived following his $1.1-million salary awarded to him when he and the team went to arbitration. The move prompted a flood of criticism from fans, who complained that owner Tom Golisano was shaving money off the payroll by sacrificing a gritty hometown player who hadn’t yet hit the prime of his career.
Kennedy scored 10 goals and had 26 points in his first full season in the NHL with Buffalo last year. He also had a goal and two assists and was a plus-three during the Sabres’ first round playoff loss to Boston.
We’ll have more information as it becomes available.
 Buffalo Bandits Director of Lacrosse Operations Scott Loffler today announced that former captain Rich Kilgour has been named as an assistant coach.
“I watched last season from the stands and it was difficult. It’ll be good to be back inside the glass. And I think I know the head coach pretty well, so the transition from the floor to the bench shouldn’t be that difficult,” said Kilgour. “We have a great group of guys and an awesome fan base so I am extremely excited to be back in the fold.”
Continue reading ‘Bandits Name Rich Kilgour Assistant Coach’
 The Buffalo Bills are done with three quarters of their preseason. With the starters getting their most extensive playing time of the summer, the team knocked off a quality opponent for the second straight week on Saturday, upending the Cincinnati Bengals, 35-20.
While wins and losses are hardly the bottom line when it comes to how Chan Gailey is evaluating his roster right now, impact plays and consistency are surely at a premium. With so many new coaches in tow, very few roster spots have been guaranteed.
After Saturday’s game the players get but one final audition to prove they belong in the NFL. That comes this week against the Detroit Lions. For many players, especially non-starters, it’s basically life or death. Based on last Saturday’s game, here’s a small list of what is up and down in terms of team stock.
Continue reading ‘Buffalo Bills: Stock Up, Stock Down’
 Earlier this month the Buffalo Bills placed injured wide receiver Marcus Easley, their fourth round pick in this year’s draft, on injured reserve with a major knee injury, making him ineligible to take the field for the team for the 2010 season.
But according to a report by Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post, he cites a source saying Easley is already off crutches, did NOT tear his ACL and could’ve returned to play as early as the first month of the regular season.
When does the nonsense over at One Bills Drive ever end?
After last season the Bills overhauled their strength and conditioning staff by hiring Eric Ciano and John Gamble to run the department. But maybe the problem isn’t really with their conditioning or coaches for that matter in recent years. Perhaps the bigger issue is with either the team doctors charged with the responsibility of diagnosing injuries and/or the decision makers in the front office who ultimately conclude what to do with said injuries.
Continue reading ‘Looks Like Bills Fumbled on Easley Diagnosis’
 Andrew Loewen, a four-year standout goalie with the Golden Griffin hockey team, is set to continue his career with the Colorado Eagles of the Central Hockey League after graduating from Canisius in 2010.
“I am really excited to continue playing at the professional level,” Loewen said. “I am fortunate to be one of a few people who receives the opportunity to live out their childhood dreams of playing hockey at the next level. There is also a welcomed sense of nervousness knowing that I am required to try out again for a hockey team. This stirs up the preseason butterflies and will create greater competition and intensify the experience of playing professional hockey.”
A two-time team MVP, Loewen stopped 2,463 saves during his career, the second most in the program’s history. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native owns the school record with a .913 career save percentage and shares the program’s mark with six career shutouts. He also ranks second with 30 career victories and third with a goals against average of 2.93.
Continue reading ‘Colorado Eagles Signs Andrew Loewen’
 The Jamestown Jets announced today they will be holding an open try-out on Labor Day weekend at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena.
The Jets will be competing in the Tier II Junior A Greater Metro Hockey League based in Ontario and are expecting to attract the best junior players available. The GMHL does not have import restrictions, allowing players from around the world to have an opportunity to showcase their skills to college coaches and scouts from across North America.
“We anticipate a good turn-out and we look forward to building our team to compete in the GMHL this season” Head Coach Dennis Canfield said.
Continue reading ‘Jamestown Jets Holding Tryouts Labor Day Weekend’
 The University at Buffalo football team wrapped up its fall camp on Thursday night with a final “scenario” type scrimmage as it readies itself for the home opener versus Rhode Island next Thursday night at 7 pm at UB Stadium.
Head coach Jeff Quinn announced the team’s two deep following practice, which included naming sophomore quarterback Jerry Davis (Fresno, CA/Edison) as the team’s starter. In all, seven former Western New York standouts ¬– including three offensive linemen – are slated to start for the Bulls against the Rams in the opener.
Continue reading ‘Bulls Wrap Up Fall Football Camp’
 Recent Niagara men’s hockey alums Juliano Pagliero (’09), Egor Mironov (’10) and Ryan Olidis (’10) have all recently signed pro contracts with the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the Central Hockey League.
After a year of playing pro hockey in Italy, one of Niagara’s best goalies is back playing hockey in North America. As a Purple Eagle, Pagliero was a rock, finishing with a 47-32-11 record, a 2.61 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage. The Dalroy, Alberta natives collegiate career was littered with awards and accolades, earning the College Hockey America Player of the Year award as a senior, while also earning All-CHA Second Team laurels as a sophomore, and First Team honors as a junior and a senior.
Continue reading ‘Three NU Hockey Alums Sign With The Killer Bees’
Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier announced today the Sabres have signed unrestricted free agent forward Colin Stuart to a one-year contract.
Stuart (7/8/1982, 6’2”, 205 lbs.) spent last season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat where he was fourth in team scoring with a career-high 36 points (17+19) in 67 games. The native of Rochester, MN, has 51 games of NHL experience with the Atlanta Thrashers from 2007-09, collecting 13 points (8+5) including four shorthanded goals.
Stuart played four years at Colorado College (2000-04), and was originally drafted by Atlanta in the fifth round (135th overall) of the 2001 Entry Draft
 The high school football season doesn’t officially commence until early September, but if you’re feenin’ to see some early action, there’s a boatload of scrimmages, many involving more than two teams, taking place early Saturday morning that should feed your hunger.
Two in particular stick out.
If you want to take make your way to Lockport high school at 9am, you’ll get a chance to see six of the best teams Western New York have to offer. New York State Class-AA champion North Tonawanda and Class-A champs Sweet Home heads the tilt as well as Williamsville South and its first-team All-WNY quarterback Joe Licata. St. Francis, Grand Island and host Lockport are also involved in the six-team scrimmage.
Continue reading ‘Big Scrimmages On Tap For Area High School Football Saturday’
 Admit it! OK, even I can’t admit it, but don’t you kind of miss Terrell Owens? Yes, I’m writing about him because he and Chad OchoCinco are coming to town for the Bills vs Bengals preseason tilt this Saturday. Look, I’d be the last person to feed into T.O.’s gigantic ego. I totally think he used Buffalo as much as we used him for football by suckering our city into being the opening montage for his reality TV career. Honestly, I was pretty cool with the guy until his whole ditching of practice to venture into Toronto for a autograph session.
However, even though I dumped T.O., like many jilted lovers, I still think about him once in a blue moon (Cue the tears).
Yes, I’ll confess, I had flashbacks after watching T.O. do his best self-promotion with OchoCinco on ESPN and during the Bengals first preseason game. Even still, that really didn’t do too much for me. What got me was when he wrote a personal letter to the city of Cincinnati; telling fans to mark February 6th (The Super Bowl) on their calendar. He also mentioned a number of other pleasantries, but that was the one that stuck with me.
Ah, yes….the hype machine is in full effect in Ohio and I kind of miss that for Western New York.
Continue reading ‘At Least One Blogger is Missing Terrell Owens’
 The Buffalo Bills have wrapped up training camp at St. John’s Fisher in Rochester following their last practice Tuesday morning. Judging by the attendance and fan interaction throughout, most would label this camp uneventful and borderline monotonous.
However, in his first camp as Bills head coach, Chan Gailey didn’t take kindly to the sentiments of a couple fans taking a few too many verbal liberties. A few spectators spent a large part of the final morning of public practice heckling a couple of the players, most notably quarterback Trent Edwards.
Following the workout, Gailey went up to the stands and let the select fans know exactly what he thought of them. He also ensured the team would not sign autographs for their group.
“They (the fans) said some things during practice that were derogatory to a couple of our players,” Gailey said. “If you say something derogatory to one of us, you’re saying it to all of us.”
Edwards was calm about Gailey’s mini-implosion, but was impressed his coach took up for him.
Continue reading ‘Gailey Goes Off on Unruly Fans in Bills Camp Finale’
 The defending MAAC Champion Niagara volleyball team has been voted as the preseason favorite to defend its crown by the league’s coaches announced on Tuesday. Two Purple Eagles were named to the Preseason All-MAAC Team.
The Purple Eagles, who claimed their first-ever MAAC Championship last season, finished atop of the poll with 93 points. Niagara returns all 10 letterwinners from last season’s team which set a school record with 23 wins.
Fairfield placed second with 92 points and was followed by Marist (68), Siena (66), Iona (58), Loyola (57), Canisius (44), Saint Peter’s (29), Manhattan (28) and Rider (15).
Continue reading ‘Niagara Volleyball Tops MAAC Preseason Poll’
 The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team released its 2010-11 schedule on Monday. The slate for the upcoming season is highlighted with a visit from Brigham Young as well as a renewed rivalry with St. Bonaventure.
Led by 12th-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, the Bulls open the season at home against Navy on Nov. 13. Five of UB’s next six games will be on the road, beginning with Youngstown State on Nov. 16. After hosting Towson on Nov. 20, the Bulls will play at Canisius (Nov. 23), at Indiana State (Nov. 27), at Army (Dec. 1) and at St. Bonaventure (Dec. 4). It will be UB’s first meeting with the Bonnies since the 1998-99 season. Despite the close proximity, this will only be the sixth meeting between the schools.
Buffalo will host three straight home games, starting with Niagara on Dec. 8. Wisconsin-Green Bay visits Alumni Arena on Dec. 11. The Bulls will close out the calendar year by hosting Brigham Young On Dec. 30. It will be the first meeting between the schools. The Cougars won 30 games last season and advanced to the second round off the NCAA Tournament. The Bulls will close out the non-conference schedule by playing at 2010 Ivy League champion and Sweet 16 participant Cornell on Jan. 3.
Continue reading ‘UB Hoops Releases 2010-11 Schedule’
 The Bisons have 70 wins and 32 comeback victories in 2010. They nearly added to both on Tuesday night.
Buffalo batted around in the eighth inning, but an early four-run deficit proved to be too big a hole to climb out of in a 7-3 defeat to the Pawtucket Red Sox from Coca-Cola Field. PawSox centerfielder Josh Reddick had five hits, and helped his team pull away late from the Bisons.
The Herd faced a 4-0 deficit in the eight inning when Luis Hernandez singled and Andy Green drew a one-out walk. Then with two outs, Nick Evans breathed live into the team with a two-run double off the left field wall. Kirk Nieuwenhuis followed with a bloop double down the left field line, bringing Buffalo to within 4-3.
Continue reading ‘Bisons Rally Falls Short, 7-3′
 USA Hockey announced on Monday that recent Canisius College graduate Cole Burkhalter will serve as the first-ever recipient of the Brendan Burke Internship. Burkhalter worked closely with the Golden Griffin hockey staff during the 2009-10 season.
“Cole is a great young man who has done an outstanding job within our hockey program,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “He has added a great deal to Canisius College and will do the same within USA Hockey. He was a great selection to be the first-ever recipient of a very great internship at USA Hockey.”
During his tenure at Canisius, Burkhalter served as a hockey operations intern, while completing his master’s degree in sport administration. His main responsibilities included breaking down game film and organizing team travel. He also coached the eighth grade boys’ varsity prep hockey team at Nichols School.
Continue reading ‘Burkhalter Named USA Hockey’s 2010-11 Brendan Burke Intern’
 After four successful years in St. Bonaventure’s bullpen, Cory Sudbrook enters his first year as an assistant coach as a part of the Bonnies’ staff.
In addition to administrative responsibilities, Sudbrook will assist with infield and outfield defense and assume first base coaching duties. He will also work with the Bonnies’ pitchers on their defensive responsibilities.
During his playing career, Sudbrook was a workhorse for the Brown and White, as he tallied at least 19 appearances in each of his four years out of the bullpen. He owns the University’s all-time appearances record (84) and has been deeply involved with Bonnies baseball for a number of years, as his father has just completed his 25th season as head coach.
Continue reading ‘Cory Sudbrook Joins Bona Baseball Staff’
 Since the first day of OTA’s, Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey has stated the starting quarterback position would be an open competition between incumbent Trent Edwards, Brian Brohm and Ryan Fitzpatrick. It’s plausible that at least in Gailey’s mind, this is true. However, if it is, Brohm is the equivalent of bringing a knife to a gun fight.
The Bills are now halfway through the preseason. Brohm didn’t see a single snap in the opener at Washington and by the time he entered the game against Indianapolis this past Thursday in Toronto, the starters were already long gone; most having traded in their helmets and shoulder pads for a freshly fitted baseball cap.
Maybe Brohm isn’t the answer anyway to the team’s quarterback woes that have plagued them in recent years. He was a college standout at Louisville and a second round draft pick of the Green Bay Packers in 2008, but failed to be out Matt Flynn in Green Bay for the backup job to Aaron Rodgers. He clearly wasn’t valued by the Packers organization when the Bills signed him. they could’ve kept him their property simply by promoting him to the active roster, but didn’t. That’s telling in itself.
Continue reading ‘Brohm’s Playing Against a Stacked Deck’
 It’s already the end of the line in 2010 for a pair of Buffalo Bills rookies. Wide Receiver Marcus Easley, a fourth round pick, and sixth round linebacker Danny Batten were placed on season-ending injured reserve Sunday by the organization.
Easley was expected at the very least for playing time as a rookie. He got off to a strong start at OTAs and looked good early in camp before suffering a knee injury.
Batten hurt his shoulder last month and was unable to properly recover. It’s uncertain if he’ll require surgery.
As the story goes, one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure. Naaman Roosevelt and David Jones most benefit from Easley’s shelving. Meanwhile, Antonio Coleman sees his chance of sticking on the roster at outside linebacker rise.
Of the seven Bills draft picks this past April, three have already been significantly injured. Ed Wang hurt his left leg in early June and still hasn’t been able to play in the preseason.
 It was Day 16 of Buffalo Bills Training Camp on Saturday afternoon. It was also the first practice back after the preseason win against the Colts. As expected, the team came out in shorts and shoulder pads and worked at about half speed, as it was basically a walk-thru for the players. Coach Gailey also shortened the practice by about 45 minutes. The quarterbacks rotation continued with Trent Edwards getting a majority of the snaps while Brian Brohm and Ryan Fitzpatrick split the backup reps in half. Levi Brown got the leftovers. As for the the rest of the players, Gailey gave more time to the special teamers to work on their drills and more time was spent on the individual drills with some 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 mixed in.
The players began strolling out onto the field by 3:30pm and practice began at about 3:45pm. As always, the team spent a ton of time on individual drills. I focused on the defensive backs. George Wilson shined out there and caught everything thrown his way during the pass catching drills. On the negative side, Reggie Corner struggled to catch the passes from the jugs machine and looked a bit slow. Terrence McGee also continued his solid camp as he caught all the “passes” and looked good in coverage drills too. Ashton Youboty also showed good hands and caught everything “thrown” to him. During the individual drills, Coach Gailey also gave extra time for the special teams to work on their drills and the fundamentals.
Continue reading ‘Bills Camp Report: Coleman Continues to Impress’
 The University at Buffalo football team held its second full-scale scrimmage on Saturday with a focus on situational elements with both the offense and defense making their presence felt.
Early in the scrimmage both the offense and defense were put in stressful situations. The offense converted several goal line and red zone opportunities into touchdowns before the defense stiffened and made a pair of stops on third down inside the 10-yard line. The offense was also forced to start a few drives inside their five-yard line, which led to a pair of punts and one nice third down conversion.
“One of the things we wanted to see today was a number of different scenarios for our kids to compete in that mirrored game-like situations,” said first-year head coach Jeff Quinn. “We saw some good things from both sides of the ball, we saw no issues with the special teams when they were activated today, so I think we got better as a football team.”
Continue reading ‘Bulls Focus on Situational Football In Second Scrimmage’
 Coming off arguably the most successful season in school history, expectations remain unwaveringly high for women’s soccer in 2010 despite the graduation of two of its most talented players.
“Our goal is to win a MAAC Championship as it is ever year,” said head coach Jim Wendling. “With two top-four finishes in the last two years, we hope to at least make it back there, but the goal is to win it all.”
In order to reach its goal of a MAAC Championship in 2010, Wendling has to replace a successful senior class, which included the team’s leading scorer in Sylvia Kowalski. Despite the loss of the talented group, Wendling made it perfectly clear the team philosophy will remain unchanged in 2010.
“I’m an attacking coach and that’s what this team will do,” Wendling said. “That will not change, we will attack and hopefully score goals.”
Continue reading ‘Canisius College 2010 Women’s Soccer Preview’
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