Show preview
6:05, Sports Talk
Guest
Adam Zimmer, new Bengals assistant coach, 6:11
Urban Meyer, OSU coach
Don Treadwell, Miami coach
Topics
Reds
Bengals
Youth football
***
College basketball
Cronin: "You've got to trust your teammates"
Stat of the day: Bearcats
From listener Scott:
Since the start of the 2010-11 season:
UC 63-6 when they score at least 60 points.
UC 7-19 when they fail to reach 60 points.
From listener Jeff
Cashmere Wright stats before and after knee sprain on January 15.
Before: 18 games, 15.1 PPG, 47% FG, 44% 3PFG, 10.8 shots per game.
After: 4 games, 8.5 PPG, 22% FG, 21% 3PFG, 10.3 shots per game.
***
Youth football and concussions
Most of the football concussion talk these days centers on the NFL. Do you have a son that plays/played youth football? What age did he start? With all the concussions talk, did you hesitate in allowing your son to play, or debate an age you would allow him to play tackle football? I spent last week researching info on area youth football programs. My son Casey is 12-years old and in 7th grade. He plays baseball and basketball. He plays football in the yard with his friends, but he's never expressed interest in playing organized football. I guess I'm surprised so many kids start tackle football as young as they do, in many cases at age 5. I would have considered many things before allowing him to play organized tackle football, including organization leaders, equipment used, who his coach was and the league policies on concussions. I can't image Casey playing organized tackle football at age 5,6,7. What is the purpose? I could see middle school, age 11 or 12. I found the comments of Baltimore Ravens players interesting last week: “I think we all understand that it’s probably not a safe sport, but it’s something that we choose to do,’’ Flacco said. “When you talk about little kids doing it, they’re not having the collisions we’re having at the NFL level. I mean, they are a bunch of 50-pound to 140-pound kids. I don’t know how much damage they’re doing to each other.”
President Obama told New Republic: "I'm a big football fan, but I have to tell you if I had a son, I'd have to think long and hard before I let him play football."
Check out this survey I found last week:
Survey on youth football, concussions
(Tampa Bay, Florida) -- Despite increasing awareness about concussion dangers for young athletes, a new national survey reveals 90% of men who played tackle football at the high school level or higher who suffered or suspected they suffered a concussion want their sons to play tackle football. Not only that, nearly half (43%) believe there is too much hype over concussions.
Of all football-playing dads polled, 77% say tackle football is safe for children under age 12 even though more than 3 in 5 of these dads suffered a concussion themselves during their playing days. And even more surprising, dads say most moms (61%) agree with them that tackle football is safe for young athletes.
The survey of 300 dads who played tackle football at the high school level or higher, was commissioned by the non-profit arm of i9 Sports, the nation’s first and fastest growing youth sports franchise.
“The startling results of this survey show even though concussion awareness is permeating youth sports today, often parents, young players and even coaches don’t heed the warnings,” says Brian Sanders, COO and President of i9 Sports, which has more than 550,000 members at 275 locations across the country. “It’s scary to us that dads who suffered concussions encourage their young sons to play tackle football at a young age. Studies show a concussion can be more dangerous for young athletes because their brains are still developing. Still these young athletes perceive concussions as a ‘cool status symbol.’ Concussion safety is a top priority at i9 Sports which is why we recommend flag football until high school.”
I noticed that i9Sports offers Spring Flag Football in Greater Cincinnati for kids ages 4-14. They have had such a growth in participation that they are expanding and have added another league. Their leagues will be offered on Sunday afternoons, in Anderson Township (Sticksel Field by St John Fisher Church) and Loveland/Mason (Loveland High School). Do your kids play in this? Would you consider flag football as an early age option?
Sounds like a topic tonight
Time for MLB to find happy truce with PEDs
Yahoo Sports
A peace must be made with the desire for clean competition and an understanding it will never truly be obtained. The problem for baseball, unlike other sports, is that the unique way the game is played may make that impossible.
Perhaps nothing upsets baseball fans and executives more than the double-standard reactions to PED use in football. The NFL is awash in this stuff, yet fans and media mostly shrug it off. In baseball every suspension is treated with over-the-top seriousness and a chorus of condemnation.
And in basketball, hockey and other sports, no one seems to care at all. Those sports get an even bigger pass than football.
***
Reds
Offseason report card: Reds
The Sporting News
Overall grade: A-
At some point this winter, I ranked the Reds No. 2 in my offseason Power Rankings. On second thought, I might have overestimated them just a bit. They did benefit from beating up on the two worst teams in baseball, I have concerns about a couple positions in the lineup, and I believe there is the possibility Choo doesn't end up the season as the starting center fielder (maybe speedster Billy Hamilton adapts quickly to the position and hits enough to get called up during the season).
But I love the pitching staff, even given a little regression from Cueto and Bronson Arroyo. I can't wait to see how Chapman does in the rotation, and I can't wait to see Votto put up MVP numbers once again. The Reds should enter the season as favorites in the NL Central, and they're my pick to hold off the Cardinals.
Ranking MLB's six divisions
ESPN.com
"Here's how I look at it," said one NL executive. "The Reds are the best team in the division. The Cardinals are the best organization in the division, because they've got so much depth. … You can flip a coin on who wins the division and which one gets one of the wild cards."
***
Bengals
Here is the official NFL Combine invite list
The Sporting News: Top 50 free agents
9. Dwayne Bowe, WR, Chiefs
Value: With his size, route-running and hands, Bowe is hard to cover when he’s on—especially in the red zone.
What to expect: Andy Reid will want to keep such a talented wideout as he works to overhaul the Chiefs’ offense. The big questions are whether Bowe wants to stay and whether he’s willing to be tagged again.
***
Signing day
Wild ride temporarily concludes for Tuberville
Paul Dehner Jr, GoBearcats.com
In the end, a few players Tuberville desired to keep ended up at Tennessee. A few players Texas Tech wanted to keep ended up in the C-paw. And a number of players nobody knew who would keep, decided on Cincinnati. The musical chairs continued for more than a month and the Bearcats feel they emerged with the right types of athletes sitting in the red and black seats.
That's all that mattered to Tuberville. Believing anything but his own eyes wasn't going to cut it, even if that meant for a hectic first few months on the job.
Buckeyes headline Big Ten's signing day
Mike Dyer, Enquirer, all area commits, in all sports
