Sooners Lower The Boom On UConn Huskies, OU Win Fiesta Bowl

Pardon the Oklahoma Sooner fans if they aren't big fans of the BCS bowls. OU had lost five BCS bowls in a row heading into Saturday's Fiesta Bowl against Connecticut.

This time the Sooners took the fight out of the dog.

Oklahoma took out those BCS frustrations on the Huskies with a 48-20 beat down.

OU quarterback Landry Jones picked apart the Connecticut secondary and sharing that wealth with a trio of Sooner receivers.

Cameron Kenney caught seven balls for 154 yards and a touchdown

Kenny Stills had eight catches for 73 yards

Ryan Broyles had himself and night with 13 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown.

Landry Jones' number were impressive. 34-49 for 429 yards and three touchdowns.

"Landry had a huge night." Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops said in the post game press conference. "Ryan always does. Jeez, that catch he made, he just every does something amazing every game."

"Great players just making plays out there." OU quarterback Landry Jones said in the post game press conference. "Ryan is one of our great players on the team."

"Coaches put us in great positions to make plays." OU wide receiver Ryan Broyles said after the game. "Landry is out there throwing the ball, putting it on spots. It is a whole team effort on offense and it definitely helps when the defense gets their offense on the field as well."

Damon Fontenot fills you in with highlights from Glendale, AZ. (Thanks NewsOK.com)



FOSG Barry Trammel and Jake Trotter of The Oklahoman add a post script to Oklahoma's win in the Fiesta Bowl. (Thanks NewsOK.com)



Photo Courtesy: Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman

BREAKING: UConn Streak Ends At 90

A basket by Stanford's Nnemkadi Ogwumike with a little over a minute to go gave the Cardinal a 63-55 lead at Maples Pavilion.

As a result, after made free throws, the Huskies 90-game NCAA win streak came to an end with a final score of 71-59.

Maya Moore had an uncharacteristic off-night with only 14 points- missing her only free throw on the evening.

Stanford head Coach Tara Vanderveer has now given the rest of the women's basketball world a blue print on how to take care of Geno Auriemma's team.

ESPN's Dave O'Brien called the run the "streak of a thousand days."

Auriemma said the atmosphere effected the team and they didn't play like themselves.

"They made big plays when they had to make them, and they took us out of our game completely," he said in his post-game interview. He also said he would appreciate the streak tomorrow before realizing what the streak meant for college basketball.

Vanderveer collects her 650th career win and evened her record at 6-6 against UConn. Stanford was also the last team to defeat UConn in an NCAA semi-final back in 2008- repeating the feat Notre Dame performed in knocking off UCLA in their 88-game streak on the men's side.

"We didn't play a perfect game, but I think we played really well," Vanderveer admitted. "It's December. We'll play better and they'll play better, too."

Jeanette Pohlen led Stanford with a career-high 31 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists.
"I think our team was really looking for me to get my shot. I'm just happy we got the win at Maples, and I'm just so proud of my team."

UConn shoots 33-percent from the floor on the night...

More when we know more...

UConn ties consecutive wins record

Maya Moore/Courtesy: Josh Wolke, Hartford Courant

And they'll probably break it in their next game. The most dominant program in Women's NCAA Basketball continued mowing down all kinds of win records after beating Ohio State 81-50 on Sunday.

The Lady Huskies have only broken a sweat a few times this season en route to a 10-0 record this season. However the bigger number is 88. 88 in a row. 88 games since they've lost. 88 times, they've taken care of business. 88 is the amount of games UCLA's men's team won in the early 70's which is by far, the all-time record of consecutive wins...until now.

The roster has turned over, most of the players are new, but they keep winning. This years team has the best player in the game, Maya Moore. The one constant is the coach, Geno Auriemma. Say what you will about him, he's not liked by everyone because he says what's on his mind, but he wins. He continues to win and shows no sign of that changing.

Check out the Hartford Courant's story about yesterday's game RIGHT HERE

One thing that came out of this game was Auriemma's rant about his team being ignored or looked down on because it's Women's Hoops. Honestly, he's not totally wrong. And anyone who looks down on this accomplishment shouldn't consider themselves a Sports fan. In any sports, what this team and program has done is nothing short of amazing and they should get the respect and coverage that an accomplishment like this deserves.

Whether the national media and the 4-letter word (ESPN) gives you the love you deserve or not, we, Coach Auriemma and Lady Huskies give you as much respect and props as we can. You've got one more game to make the record your own. Now go take care of business Tuesday against Florida State.

Your game highlights from the one and only ESPN:



Here is post-game with Coach Geno Auriemma talking about the disparity in opinions about women't basketball (I'm being more polite than he was), he may not say it the right way, but the point is vaild...and oh, so very true:

Thank You ESPN:

Big East Football Classic..... Sort of. UConn Finally Defeats West Virginia In Overtime

If we kept track of BCS conference standings, and here at the OSG HQ we do, then the Big East Conference would be dead last well behind 5th place ACC.

For the past few years West Virginia has been the lone bright spot in the Big East. The Mountaineers have challenged teams from conferences from the upper half of the BCS food chain and won. Of course that was during the Rich Rodriquez era in Morgantown. The Bill Stewart era has tried to maintain the status quo in Mountaineerland but it just hasn't happened. That's too bad because West Virginia's fans are as passionate as they come.

West Virginia had never lost to Connecticut, until Friday night when an overtime 27 yard field goal by Dave Teggart gave the Huskies a 16-13 win over the Mountaineers.

"I'm proud of everyone and it feels good to beat West Virginia for the first time in seven years." Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall said.

"Tough Loss, I hate it dearly, the Mountaineers played hard, but it was very disappointing." West Virginia Head Coach Bill Stewart said. "Maybe the UConn Huskies fans rushing the field all around us will linger in their mind and hopefully they do not have that feeling too many times during their career at West Virginia."

Here's the game winning field goal and post game sound from WTIC-TV. (Thanks WTIC-TV/FoxCT/Hartford Courant)

 

Photo Courtesy: Hartford Courant)

8 Charges Levelled Against UConn By NCAA

((HT: WTNH-TV New Haven))

The University of Connecticut says the NCAA found eight violations in the men's basketball program.

The alleged violations include improper phone calls, text messages to recruits, and the ever-popular and nebulous "improper benefits." Coach Jim Calhoun was cited for failing to "promote an atmosphere of compliance."

Whatever that means...

The school released the infractions letter it received from the NCAA following their 15-month investigation. UConn is supposd to appear before them in October to respond to the charges.

Most of the issues center around the recruting of Nate Miles last year. Miles ended up getting in trouble with the law and was expelled from UConn. But the claim from the NCAA is that a team manager paid for meals, transportation and hotel rooms for Miles before he signed with the school.

In the meantime, two UConn assistants, assistant coach Patrick Sellers and Director of Basketball Operations Beau Archibald, agreed to step down in light of the allegations.

Here's Coach Calhoun talking about what the NCAA has charged...

78= Perfect

((HT: WTNH-TV New Haven))

Admit it... when the UConn women had only scored 12 points at the half against Stanford, you thought the win streak was in the toilet...

It wasn't...

UConn goes back-to-back undefeated seasons in NCAA women's basketball with a 53-47 win in San Antonio. Maya Moore was the tournament's Most Valuable Player...

It would've been her or Tina Charles, right...???

Jamie Muro was in a sports bar for an obligatory fan piece...

71

What's in a number...???

For UConn, it's a new record for consecutive wins breaking their old record of 70.

It was a 59-44 win over Notre Dame in the Big East Conference semi-finals...

There really isn't a whole lot that can be said without dropping into cliches- something the HQ detests...

We'll leave it to Rich Coppola and the Fox61 team from Hartford to give you the details... Laurie Perez follows from outside the arena for a standard fan piece...

((HT: WTIC-TV/CTnow.com))
 

The Monday Morning Sports Update

With a weekend of a lot of little things going on...ok...there were a couple of interesting stories, but there aren't a lot that we didn't cover over the course of the weekend. But in the interest of trying to stay somewhat consistent (as long I don't have to go to work until 11am), here are a few things that happened overnight.

Your First NCAA Qualifier is...

Yes, it is getting to be that time of year in College Basketball. In fact this week would be considered the 1st of the "Tournament Weeks" with most conferences that have tournaments playing them and teams qualifying for March Madness or as we know it, the NCAA Tournament.

The 1st team in....Northern Iowa. The Panthers are in by virtue of beating Wichita State 67-53 in the Missouri Valley

Conference basketball tournament on Sunday.

More from thetelegraph.com RIGHT HERE

Enjoy this clip of students at the school trying to pronounce the players names. Thanks Gazetteonline and You Tube:

George Karl Perseveres....

Best wishes to Denver Nuggets Coach George Karl who will will undergo a sur

gical procedure today (monday) to help his treatment for throat and neck cancer. He'll start another round of chemotherapy starting on Tuesday.

He hopes to return to his team on Friday. We hope so. Karl, one of the better coaches in the NBA has to be struggling to get through this. Chemo is tough on people who don't have physical, stressful job...we can only imagine how tough this is for him.

Karl spoke about the whole thing when he was diagnosed in February.

Thanks You Tube:

UConn Women just keep winning:

It's no secret that the University of Connecticut's women's basketball team has been one of the if not the most successful of any team in the NCAA for the past oh...20 or so years. So it should come as no surprise that they have tied their own record yesterday when they won their 70th game in a row. They advanced in the Big East tournament with a 77-41 win over Syracuse

Yes, it is short of UCLA's 88 game win streak from back in the early 70's, but in this day and time it is pretty damn impressive. The Lady Huskies haven't really been challenged this season, they have a 31-0 record and they've won all of their games by at least 10 points. It would take a monumental upset for them not to run the table and win the Women's Final Four.

More on the team, the win and the significance from the Courant.com RIGHT HERE

Since we can't show highlights from the game (Network restrictions), here is a story on the whole thing from AP News with Photos and a voice track. Thanks Associated Press and You Tube:

TWTW: All That Jazz, UConn Delivers Bowl Win Over USC

The OBC referred to his team's play as a "sad, sad effort" at a somewhat-shaved down Legion Field in Birmingham as the Huskies took out the Gamecocks 20-7 in the Papajohns.com Bowl...

Yes, we know... it's all about the marketing and not necessarily the fact the Papa drives a really cool Camaro in his commercials...

UConn had the 95th ranked pass defense in Division 1 coming in...
Apparently, Stephen Garcia failed to get that memo as he was hurried and harried all day by UConn pressure...

Steve Spurrier sure looked frustrated at the "Stephen Garcia Experience." Those of us at the OSG HQ are fairly confident that OBC is glad the whole thing is over...

No visor spiking even... goes to show you just how fed up he was at the whole thing.

Here's some cool postgame from John Pierson and our friends at WTNH-TV...


UConn's been through, about, 48 layers of hell this year...
The HQ congratulates them and their closed fist...

TWTW: UConn Takes Out Weis Guys In South Bend

((HT: WTNH-TV))

After losing three games by a total of four points after the slaying of teammate Jasper Howard, UConn finally got a win Saturday- in South Bend, against Notre Dame, in double overtime- 33-30...

Andre Dixon scored on a 4-yard touchdown run in the second overtime, and we think that all this does is send Charlie Weis packing with an $18-million golden dome parachute...

Weis said 6-5 wasn't acceptable when he took the job, and those of us at OSG HQ think 6-5 is unacceptable now...

Here's your coverage of the game, thanks to our friends at WTNH-TV...
John Pierson stands inside in front of a monitor...

Jaw Jacking Led To Jasper Howard Murder

((HT: WTNH-TV))

It seems that college kids will always be college kids, and athletes will always be athletes. Cliques will be cliques and chest will get puffy...

Apparently, that's what happened the night that UConn football player Jasper Howard was murdered.

Affidavits released show witnesses saw Howard take a swing at one of the guys brought up on charges and that one of his teammates "disrespected" a woman at the dance. That's what started the whole thing....

Thanks to our friends at WTNH-TV in New Haven for the disappointing news...

TWTW: UConn Loses Heartbreaker To Rutgers

((HT: WTIC Fox 61/Hartford Courant))

The UConn Huskies had it won with 38 seconds left. Then all of a sudden, another fourth-quarter breakdown was in the books.

Rutgers' Tim Brown silenced the place with an 81-yard catch and run with 22 seconds left as the Scarlet Knights (6-2, 1-2) escaped with their first Big East win. Brown, a childhood friend of Jasper Howard, led Rutgers to a 28-24 victory before 37,045 Saturday at Rentschler Field. Howard, who was stabbed to death two weeks ago, was honored in a pregame ceremony.

On the winning TD, the Huskies had their best cover corner, Robert McClain, on Brown. But once he got past McClain, safety Aaron Bagsby took a poor angle and Brown took it to the house.

"Crazy game," Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. "[Rutgers] kept fighting even when it didn't look so good."

Here's your late highlights and Randy Edsall post, thanks to the Courant...
 

Arrests Made In Jasper Howard Stabbing

((HT: WTNH-TV/Santillo))

John William Lomax III is one of three arrests police made today in the stabbing death of Jasper Howard.

In addition to the murder charge, Lomax was also charged with conspiracy to commit assault.

Hakim Muhammad, 20, of Bloomfield, has also been charged with conspiracy to commit assault.

Police say Jamal Todd of Hartford pulled a fire alarm inside the dance, sending about 300 people outside. That's when Jasper, and another UConn student, were stabbed.

Todd has been charged with falsely reporting an incident and reckless endangerment. He has been released on bond and is due back in court on November 10.

According to Lomax's Facebook page, he is friends with Johnny Hood , a Bloomfield man that was arrested for breach of peace and interfering with an officer the day after the incident

Police say the arrest warrants have been sealed.

Here's the police presser, thanks to our friends at WTNH-TV


Here's the Breaking News coverage from WTNH-TV, Tina Detelj was on site...

Jasper Howard Laid To Rest In Miami

((HT: WTNH-TV))

UConn's team arrived on four white buses for Jasper Howard's funeral Monday morning. Each man carried a single white rose, tied with a blue ribbon, as he walked into the church in Howard's hometown.

At the end of the services, the teammates that were with Howard the night he was stabbed spoke to the family, comforting them in saying that Howard was not alone that night.

A viewing was held Sunday, a week after Howard was fatally stabbed outside a dance on Connecticut's campus.

No one has been charged in his death.

Marc Robbins got to cut a package from the studio in New Haven...thanks again to our friends at WTNH-TV


Sound from teammates talking about the stabbing can be found here... also from WTNH...

Sunday Update: Jasper Howard Homicide

((HT: WTIC-TV/WTNH-TV/The Hartford Courant))

The state police dive team was searching Swan Lake near the entrance to the University of Connecticut campus on Saturday.

A diver was videotaped in the water as officers were assisting from the shore in Storrs, and a second diver was searching on the other side of the shallow lake.

Police would not say if they were searching for a knife in the case of the murder of UConn football cornerback Jasper Howard, who was stabbed during an on-campus fight last weekend and died Sunday. State police officials at the scene said they could not comment.

Lt. J. Paul Vance, the chief spokesman for the state police, confirmed that officers were at the scene, but he referred questions Saturday to the UConn police.

Who, of course, would still not comment...

Here was a piece of the Jasper Howard memorial before the West Virginia game in Morgantown from the Courant...
 

WTNH-TV's Marc Robbins got to stand out in the rain for their return home to Storrs for his live shot...

UConn Witnesses Threatened, T-Shirts Now On Sale

((HT: WTNH-TV))

Neither in a good way...

University of Connecticut police say witnesses to the killing of football player Jasper Howard are being threatened with violence if they come forward with evidence.

Maj. Ronald Blicher tells the student newspaper, The Daily Campus , that the threats are being made in Internet postings and police are looking into them. He says authorities are still urging people to submit videos, photos or other information.

But Andrew Pergam of NBC Connecticut, formerly WVIT-TV, lets us in on the whole profiteering motive of some folks up that way.

A website has been prominently promoting tee-shirts and towels memorializing Jasper Howard with the promise that “all proceeds benefit Jasper Howards [sic] child.”

Not cool, says Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. Not cool at all.

For one thing, the Pennsylvania company, gamedaytease.com, appears to be violating University of Connecticut logo and licensing rules, and for another, the company is not registered as a charity with the state, and therefore can’t sell products this way. They have "failed to demonstrate authorization or permission," said a press release.

Blumenthal gave gamedaytease their cease and desist presser Friday afternoon.

This might be one of the last chances to see what one of these looks like before the entire state of Connecticut drops the hammer... they've got a lot of stuff up on their site page.

It may not be there much longer...

Tuesday Update: Jasper Howard Homicide

Stepfather Henry Williams spoke to reporters Tuesday.

He expressed gratitude for outpouring of love and support the family has received from the Connecticut community since 20-year-old Jasper Howard was stabbed to death early Sunday morning outside a university-sponsored dance.

Williams says Howard loved UConn and considered the team his second family. He is asking UConn players to take a moment to grieve, and then play the rest of the season for his son.

Howard's mother, Joangila, did not speak, and had to leave the room during Williams' remarks when she was overcome with emotion.

From WTNH-TV:
Crystal Haynes was on campus earlier in the day for the UConn moment of silence...


Tina Detelj was on campus again today as the family came forward...

Monday PM Update: Jasper Howard Homicide

((HT: Hartford Courant/Altimari, Owens, Dempsey))

Police have questioned -- but not arrested -- a Bloomfield man about his possible role in the stabbing death of a University of Connecticut football player over the weekend, a Hartford attorney said.

Deron Freeman said he represents a man who was questioned Sunday in connection with the killing of Jasper Howard. He declined to identify his client, but did say he is one of four men UConn police view as "main suspects."

UConn police arrived at the man's home Sunday and asked him to follow them back to Storrs for questioning, Freeman said Monday night. "He voluntarily submitted himself to questioning," the lawyer said.

The man's family contacted Freeman on Sunday because "police were questioning him for quite some time," Freeman said. He contacted police, told them he represented the man and told them to stop questioning him.

He said he believes that his client will be arrested. UConn police said they "had evidence connecting my client to the stabbing," Freeman said. "They said they had an eyewitness."

A hearing was held earlier Monday for 21-year-old Johnny Hood, who was arrested for breaching the peace at the same party, but his representation claims that Hood was simply at the "wrong place at the wrong time."

WTNH's Erin Cox reports that one of the UConn football players attending the party actually pointed Hood out as someone involved in the melee on campus.

Tina Detelj's piece starts team coverage for WTNH-TV


Followed by John Pierson's piece


UConn players will be available for the first time to address the death of Jasper Howard at their Tuesday media availability.

Monday Update: Jasper Howard Homicide

((HT: WTNH-TV))

The medical examiner says that a single stab wound to the abdomen killed Jasper Howard, a University of Connecticut football player. Meanwhile, no arrests have been made and police say they have no suspects in the case.

Howard's death has been ruled a homicide.

The star cornerback died Sunday following an altercation outside a homecoming party on the Storrs campus. He was 20-years old and was expecting his first child.

"I have two children of my own, but I got 105 other sons," UConn Head coach Randy Edsall said. "And one of my sons have been taken away."

19-year old Brian Parker, a red shirt freshman on the UConn football squad was also stabbed. Parker was treated and released from an area hospital.

Anyone with information on what happened is asked to call UConn police at 860-486-4800. The state police major crimes squad is assisting with the investigation.

Marc Robbins is live on the campus in Storrs...
((HT: WTNH-TV))


Brian Bennett from ESPN reports that Edsall said one player had held Howard in his arms after the stabbing while another tried to address the wound and became covered with blood. Those two players may not be mentally ready to play West Virginia Saturday.

Understandable... completely understandable.

West Virginia head coach Bill Stewart said that Howard will be honored in some way in Morgantown at the game Saturday afternoon.

UConn player killed in on-campus stabbing

STORRS -- Tragedy has struck the UConn Huskies, a day after defeating Louisville 38-25.

Junior cornerback Jasper Howard, who started all 13 games last year at cornerback as a true sophomore and also led the Big East in punt returns, was stabbed and killed in a fight that happened on campus after the game.

According to Scott Powers with the Hartford Courant, the 20-yr old Howard "was taken to St. Francis Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Coach Randy Edsall spent the night at St. Francis."

An emergency alert posted on the University's website says that the person who stabbed Howard is still at large at this time.

Police are asking anyone with information related to the stabbing to contact the University police at 860-486-4800.

Here's the latest story, thanks to our friends at WTNH NewsChannel 8: