Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/19/2020

It's time to get back to American soil and sports.  And that means H-O-R-S-E.  Yes, the favorite kid's game in the driveway.  Except played by professionals.  And who came out on top?  Utah Jazz guard Michael Conley.  The 4th overall pick in 2007 schooled Tennessee hoops star and Women's Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Tamika Catchings, NBA 5-time All-Star Chauncey Billups, then current NBA star and two-time All-Star dunk contest champion Zack LaVine.  He did it with outside shots on one leg shots, and trick shots.  Just like that bully on the hard court.  In this case, everyone won because $200K was donated to charity.  But Conley will have his etch in history, and is the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/12/2020

Belarus is carrying the sports world right now and this Blog is here for it.  This week, we focus on the Belarus Premier soccer league (a.k.a.Vyšejšaja Liha) which in Week 4 is starting to sort itself out with favorites.  One of the stronger teams is Torpedo BelAZ which has emerged as the top team in the league at 3-1-0 with only two goals against.  Brazilian Gabriel Ramos notched his second goal in four weeks in a crucial victory over previously unbeaten Energetyk-BGU in a match of heavyweights.  Unfortunately, only 287 fans attended  The goal tied him for second overall in the league.  The 24-year old midfielder's aggressive style has netted 2 yellows in four games which probably means he's in trouble or has to sit out the next game (I tried to read the rules of the league but they were in Belarusian).  Anyway, Ramos is good and he's our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/5/2020

The hottest league going is the Belarus Extraleague hockey.  You read that right.  It's finals time, and bragging rights for all of Belarus.  And it was Yunost Minsk's time.  In dramatic fashion in the final three games they won all.  Two in overtime.  It was the Yunost's second title in a row and 3 out of 5.  Think San Francisco Giants 2010 - 2014.  It was Maxim Parfeyevets overtime shot in Game 5 that sealed the deal against Shakhter Soligorsk.  He also tallied an assist earlier in Game 5 and a key goal in Game 4 exerting the dominance of Minsk.  The real winners are fan who are still getting hockey.  Congrats to Parfeyevets for the Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/29/2020

The Kentucky Derby may be delayed, but that doesn't stop the qualification races and a big winner was determined this week.  Tiz the Law, trained by Barclay Tagg, scorched the Gulfstream park 9 furlongs in 1:50, healthy for the upper echelon of the Triple Crown events.  But was jockey Manny Franco that rode the colt to victory.  The 25 year old Puerto Rico native has yet to surge onto the national stage, but may be poised to do so, even with the Kentucky Derby delayed to Labor Day weekend.  Will Tiz the Law be the horse to beat this summer?  We shall see.  But Franco is the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/22/2020

In a dark time in modern sports history, a shining beacon from the north gives inspiration.  Thomas Waerner won one of the most iconic sports events on the planet.  The Iditarod.  Nearly 1000 miles of mushing across the beautiful yet rugged terrain northern land of Alaska.  Done in 09:10:37:47 (days, hours, minutes, seconds).  For reference, the three weeks of the Tour de France winner finishes in between 3 and 4 days (albeit not elapsed time).  That's a lot of time in the saddle and on the trail.  The Norwegian Waerner is only the fourth non-American to win the Iditarod, and it was surprising in only his second try.  He gave all credit to K2 and Bark, his two lead dogs, giving all of his ten dogs a snack after the race.  Waerner is the second Iditarod champion to be named Sportsman of the Week and should not be the last!

Credit to The Guardian for much of the information in this article

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/15/2020

It was a short sports week in all too many ways but we won't dwell on that.  We had two good days of sports.  Monday and Tuesday.  And in convincing fashion, the North Dakota State Bison showed they were not just a football school in surging to semifinal and final wins in the Summit League Tournament.  Led by our Sportsman of the Week Tyson Ward.  Ward poured in 21 points to beat the 4th seeded Oral Roberts University on Monday, then another 23 points and 13 boards on Tuesday as they dismantled rival North Dakota including 5-5 on three point shots.  Had the NCAA Tournament been held, it would have been the Bison fifth appearance.  As it is, they won their last game and went out on top, thanks to Ward and his Conference Champion teammates.

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/8/2020

A hat trick is one thing.  Five goals in a game is another.  But our Sportsman of the Week did just that.  Mika Zibanejad of the New York Rangers tormented Ilya Samsonov of the Washington Capitals for the quinfecta in 52 minutes to give the Rangers a key win in their playoff chase in the Eastern Conference.  Zibanejad scored 7 goals in 3 games over the week.  His 39 goals this year are a career high and he's hit the 20 goals in a season 5 of the last 6 seasons.  The Swede showed his mettle this week, and is the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/1/2020

Just when you think it's over, football season is back!  XFL style, as the second edition of the alternative to the NFL takes center stage and has been entertaining to date.  Mainly because the level of play has been high.  The St. Louis BattleHawks have been a team to follow, being that St. Louis was the only XFL city that didn't already have an NFL team.  And it's been a success.  St. Louis is leading the league in attendance at 28K per game and are led by a QB who seems to be a solid NFL backup if not starter in 2020.  Jordan Ta'amu led his team to its third victory in Week 4, on a 20-27, 264 passing yards, 65 yard rushing effort for the teams 3rd win in 4 weeks (second best record in the league).  Ta'amu is second in the XFL in passing yards at 876 yards and is turning heads with his decision making (leading the league at 75% completion percentage).  The 22 year-old had a lot of NFL preseason snaps for the Houston Texans last August (due to preserving Deshaun Watson and an injured backup) and will likely get a nod this summer.  And deserved, our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 2/23/2020

Our blog is known for edge (not really but I like to think so).  There is no more a Sportsman than a common man.  A guy who hasn't played any professional sports prior to a heroic effort and he's over 40 years old.  Who makes a living driving the most interesting vehicle in the history of conveyance, the Zamboni.  Check, check, and, check.  And he played in a game in which his team won.  The Carolina Hurricanes found themselves without a goalie after both James Reimer (injury) and Petr Mrazek (collision) were forced out of the game.  Enter David Ayres.  Part time Zamboni driver for the Toronto Marlies (AHL) entered the game and after allowing two goals on two shots (cutting the lead to one goal) to the hosting Toronto Maple Leafs, stopped the next eight shots to enable the Canes to hold onto a 6-3 win.  Let's not fool ourselves, we all dream of that day we are called into action off the sidelines and get to lead our team to victory.  It just doesn't happen.  Except to David Ayres.  Our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 2/16/2020

An unusual sports weekend, with Daytona 500 being postponed until Monday, NBA on All Star break, XFL great (but not ready to go there yet), we focus on hockey.  Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers is establishing himself as elite, if not on TV ever because of the lack of market visibility.  Draisaitl \Dry'-Psi'-tul\ netted 3 goals and chipped in 7 assists in 4 games, as the Oilers went 3-1.  They find themselves tops in the Pacific conference and poised for some home ice advantage in the playoffs.  The 24-year-old German finds himself leading Edmonton in Goals (4th in the NHL), Assists (1st in NHL), and Points (also 1st in NHL) on a team with emerging starts Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (26) and Connor McDavid (23) for what appears to be a formidable trio for years to come (all lefties).  Remember his name in the playoffs, as Draisaitl is our Sportsman of the Week!