This year reviews aaron freeman ween he has the mollusk defines given his word to participate in the dunk contest, and that should be great sight to see. So, is Charlie Weis going to get fired? Lately, no one cares.It’s all about Les Miles. Is he going to get fired?Well he isn’t.Want to know why? It’s because Miles’s buy out for this year is $13 million. LSU’s athletic department does have that, but why spend it? Give the man a chance. The clock management gaffe from last week is really his major mistake since arriving at LSU in 2005.

LSU plays Arkansas this weekend, or Ar-KANSAS as Miles calls it, this weekend art ween . For Les to be fired, LSU will have to fall to Arkansas and lose its bowl game as well Not gonna happen weenradio . LSU will win out this season, in my opinion, and will beat Arkansas 35-31 Yes my pick is four points in the Tigers’ favor h’ween mask . Tune to ESPN Saturday at six, when the Razorbacks of Arkansas take on the Fighting Tigers of LSU blue h’ween mask . Should be a good one.All fans making the trip to Baton Rouge, be safe and enjoy the game It should be fun. God bless, and as always, GEAUX TIGERS! This article is also featured on Talking Tiger Athletics. In the grand scheme of things NHL scouts are the forgotten man when it comes to a teams success.But in the case of the New York Rangers this season, the scouting staff did their best David Copperfield impression and made magic happen in the Big Apple.Going into training camp the Blueshirts had four NHL defensemen under contract with Wade Redden, Michal Rozsival, Marc Staal, and Dan Girardi; whom was a superb find in 2006 as an undrafted free agent signing.To make matters worse GM Glen Sather had little cap room after signing free agent sniper Marian Gaborik to a $37.5 million contract over five years.It seemed as though nothing short of a miracle was going to make the Rangers a playoff contender this season.Even if Henrik Lundqvist was the second coming of Jacques Plante, Sean Avery played like Mark Messier, and Gaborik suddenly transformed into Pavel Bure, the Rangers had way too many holes on the blue line to be taken seriously.But then came the emergence of 25-year-old free agent signing Matt Gilroy out of Boston University, and the 19-year-old phenom Michael Del Zotto; who was drafted 20th overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.The scouts knew Gilroy was capable of being an NHL defenseman, and he was highly pursued by numerous clubs including the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs, but inevitably decided his star would shine brighter on Broadway.So far it has, as he has been rock solid through the first two months of the season.In the case of Del Zotto, the Rangers scouts knew he could step in and play offensively at an elite level even at 19, and he has not disappointed, leading the back end with 5 goals and 11 assists in 23 games.Where he has surprised many is in his calm demeanor and smart defensive play as well.But it doesn’t stop there, as the scouts of the Blueshirts have also seen their 54th overall selection in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft pay huge dividends.Artem Anisimov has provided an offensive spark to go with his size at 6′4″ and 200lb frame.When you throw these players into the mix of other good finds like Brandon Dubinsky (60th overall in 2004), Ryan Callahan (127th overall in 2004), and of course Marc Staal (12th overall in 2005), well you have to give credit to an underrated scouting staff in the Big Apple.They may just be the Simon Cowell’s of the hockey world when it comes to finding talent.One has to wonder just how good this team could be if they didn’t have $17 million a year tied up in the questionable contracts to Chris Drury, Wade Redden and Sean Avery.But that might just make theamateur scouting staff of the Rangers about as important to the team as Kramer was to Seinfeld.The fact is, they just wouldn’t be this good without them.The New York Rangers may or may not challenge for a Stanley Cup this season, but the fact there is even mention of it is due to the guys that spend numerous nights away from their families in a cold arena somewhere trying to find the next big thing.Or in the Rangers case, trying to find a player to fill a void left by the almighty salary cap.And for that, fans of the Blueshirts are blessed.Watch Gilroy snap one home from this past weekend. .

Yanks-Abroad is a great site.  I read it near religiously dean ween .  You should too.The name alone, however, suggests its latent bias?one toward a preference for US players that are playing abroad, and a (general) disinterest in MLS drifter in the dark .  That made Brent Latham?s new Yanks Abroad piece ?PHILLY..GO AMERICAN!? such a peculiar and interesting one.  It is a worthy read, so I won?t recap it here, but needless to say he makes an interesting argument that the Philadelphia Union has a unique opportunity to go 100 percent American with its roster?and that it might actually be a good idea.A thought provoking idea, for sure, but I am struggling with some of the surrounding analysis where d the cheese go . Here are some themes or points Brent made that trouble me a bit.The fact that more US players leading the scoring charts would ??fight a trend that threatens to make it less relevant on the international soccer scene.?  This depends on how you define international soccer ?relevance? monique the freak .

 I could see a few ways to build ?relevance?: A) MLS clubs start beating International club teams from top-leagues in something that matters,B) MLS clubs compete for, or sign players who are respected/desired by European clubs orC) MLS provides talent to International clubs that succeed in the best leagues.  MLS Clubs do not do ?A? very frequently.  Superliga?though entertaining?is a weak competition in terms of international respect?at least outside of Mexico.  Well, perhaps within Mexico too.. define ween . The MLS All Star Game?  Good fun.  But not ?real? by any stretch of the imagination.I would say that ?B? almost REQUIRES the player to be an International, since any American player ?coming home? provides a built-in excuse for the Euro?s to say he?s headed to MLS for ?non-sporting reasons? happy colored marbles .  And for relevance, to me it is hard to name four bigger things MLS has done lately than the additions of David Beckham, Freddie Ljungberg, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, and perhaps Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Blanco might only add Mexican respect, and GBS may only add South American credibility, but still…) buenos tardes amigos . These players came and played hard, but they were not able to dominate the league.The ?C? option is likely where we have more chance and history of ?relevance? in the international soccer community.  Providing talent to European or other top-tier international teams.  However, I think it matters little to the ?international soccer scene? if the players we are growing, showcasing and/or selling come from the USA, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, or anywhere else.     MLS will be relevant if it is successful as a feeder system to them, not for where those players come from booze me up and get me high .  There is a difference between US Soccer relevance and MLS relevance.Another general theme is: While Europe is probably the best place for a young American creative talent to develop, they might be well served with more options in the USA.I generally agree?the more options for American players, the better.

 I think the evidence is out on if/when there is a right time to jump to Europe?especially for ?creative? players.  So many of our promising US Players end up floundering post transfer (Eddie Johnson and Freddy Adu are easy examples.) .  Would Landon Donovan be better if he stayed in (or went back to) to Europe?  Maybe.The interesting thing I struggle with here though, isn?t that more MLS options for creative/offensive American players in MLS is a bad thing?surely not?but the suggestion that including international players alongside them stunts their growth.   Yes, there are only so many positions on the field, thus limiting overall chances when there?s an experienced foreign international player.  However, I?d be curious to measure (impossible, of course) what difference Carlos Valderamma made on Steve Ralston?s game freedom of ‘76 .  Or what effect Guillermo Barros Schelotto is having on Eddie Gaven, or Robbie Rodgers?  Etc big jilm . Etc. Hey, there are other successful clubs that do this, why not in Philly?Examples of Chivas Guadalajara and Athletic Bilbao are given to prove that an ?all local? team can survive, or even thrive.  The problem I see is that both Chivas and Athletic have a terrific feeder system, and development capability (or at least, I suspect so) by which they can source (grow? groom?) local talent .  (Especially Athletic, since Chivas can ?buy? good Mexican talent more easily than Athletic can ?buy? good Basque talent.)   MLS clubs’ development and youth programs are nascent, to be kind, and far from reliable.  This presents a significant hurdle since one American-only club will have trouble out-bidding others for American talent in MLS. So I?m against this ?All American Team? thing, right?No, not at all.  In fact, in ?What is a ?Chivas? anyway?? I suggested that?in a very different direction than the go-America theme?maybe Chivas USA blew it when they gave up their ambitious All-Latino goal.  Why not have a themed team?Brent rightly calls out some risks?but leans heavily on the ?marketing value? associated with ?Team USA? as a saving grace.