General

Shanoff’s WUC: Vick, Kinsler, USC QBs, LLWS

Aug 28, 2009, 12:00 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: Mike Vick vs. Eagles fans, Ian Kinsler vs. Nick Green, Matt Barkley vs. Aaron Corp, Byron Leftwich vs. Luke McCown, Roy Williams vs. Brandon Marshall, LLWS vs. NFL Preseason, LSU vs. the SEC West, Lou Piniella vs. Expectations and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: The Philly fans cheered Mike Vick.â†µ

â†µ

â†µThat -- more than how he looked on the field, more than how he was used -- was the most important development of his return last night.â†µ

â†µâ†µ“It was awesome. When I was running out onto the field I was listening to see what the reaction was going to be,” Vick said. “I was very pleased. I really didn’t expect that reaction, but I was very thankful.”â†µ

â†µâ†µDid we learn much about Vick from his 4 pass attempts (all completions of one variety or another) or his snap where he lined up as a WR? Clifton Brown has the must-read breakdown, but I found this quote telling, about his one other snap: The Vick keeper, stopped for virtually no gain.â†µ

â†µâ†µ“I was just trying to please the crowd, take off and run when I could have passed the ball off to the running back,” Vick said. “Just the excitement. After awhile, I told myself I had to calm down.”â†µ

â†µâ†µAgain, it comes back to Vick’s relationship with the fans -- his interest in being beloved again. He had that love before he even took a snap, and he flashed enough potential that it seems like the relationship will only get stronger -- even if that doesn’t impact the regular season until mid-October.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe fans’ approval -- back in the stadium, where it matters -- was the most powerful moment of Vick’s return to the NFL.â†µ

â†µ

â†µ(Too bad the vast majority of fans around the country were not given the opportunity to watch it.) â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL Preseason: Roy Williams was already a sketchy fantasy pick, ranked among the Top 20 WRs. Now he reportedly has a broken collarbone, which would spike fantasy owners who believed in him -- not to mention the Cowboys’ offense.â†µ

â†µâ†µFavre Watch: He self-analyzes his fit in Minnesota as a “work in progress,“ which suggests all is not as smooth as some Vikings players would like you to think. Then again, how hard is it to hand the ball off to Adrian Peterson?â†µ

â†µâ†µQB Battle: Byron Leftwich looks like the “winner” in Tampa’s QB derby. (It’s “winner,” of course, because none of the options -- Leftwich, Luke McCown and rookie 1st-round pick Josh Freeman -- seems like they are going to dazzle.)â†µ

â†µâ†µHoldouts: It won’t do Michael Crabtree any favors with his public relations that the team has apparently offered him a $20 million deal over 4 years, with $16 million guaranteed.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Talking Pointsâ†µ

â†µâ†µ• AL Wild Card West: Rangers gain...â†µ

â†µâ†µ• AL Wild Card East: Red Sox stumble.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• LA takes 2 of 3 at COL: “Damn right,” says Torre.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• The List, Cont’d: Going to Supreme Court?â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Fantasy Stud: Ian Kinsler (2/4, 2 HR, 4 RBI)â†µTweet of the Night: From SNL’s Seth Meyers (@sethmeyers21), about Boston’s use of infielder Nick Green to pitch last night: “A positional player pitching in a blowout is like when a sitcom adds a kid. It’s fun at first, but the end result is still a loser.”â†µ

â†µâ†µLLWS: Did you catch last night’s ridiculous US semifinal between California and Georgia? There’s still time to catch the finales this weekend: California vs. Texas for the US title; Taiwan vs. Mexico for the International title -- then the two champs meet for the LLWS championship.â†µ

â†µâ†µCFB: Matt Barkley, true freshman, is your starting QB of USC. It’s not like Pete Carroll had an incumbent to work with, and Barkley WAS the top-ranked prep QB in the nation last year. Frankly, this is what risk-averse Jim Tressel should have done a year ago with Terrelle Pryor.â†µ

â†µâ†µCFB SN Countdown No. 8 LSU: You know the SEC West is loaded when the Tigers are a Top 10 team, yet might still only be the 3rd-best team in their own division (4th-best in the SEC overall). Still: Like OK St., LSU represents the best shot of seeing Florida lose this season, at Death Valley on Oct. 10.â†µ

â†µâ†µCBB Offseason: DUI is no joke. But former Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie is. (He pleaded not guilty to the charge.)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Offseason: David Lee gets the Shoals treatment. “Glorified role player?” Disagree!â†µ

â†µâ†µMedia: ESPN announced it would launch ESPNBoston.com in 3 weeks, a direct challenge to the struggling Boston Globe and tabloid Boston Herald. It should immediately be a player as a local sports-news site, bolstered by huge regional names like Peter Gammons and Bill Simmons.â†µ

â†µâ†µGossip: Derek Jeter and Minka Kelly ... engaged? (Secretly?) That would make for quite an October for Jeter: Reclaim a World Series title for the Yankees AND publicly announce an engagement to Lyla Garrity.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: “You want to blame me? Take your shots. It doesn’t bother me one bit, OK?” -- Lou Piniella, on the failure of the Cubs to contend for a playoff spot. â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

â†µ

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

See More: