LSU QB Joe Burrow: The NFL’s next great gunslinger

In the SEC title game at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Joe Burrow threw for 349 yards and four touchdowns in LSU’s 37-10 win over Georgia. (photo by River Gracey)

By River Gracey |
Sports writer

As the confetti settled on Dec. 7  in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, it became obvious to me what I had just witnessed. It was clear and obvious before the game that the LSU Tigers were the favorite to beat the fourth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. ESPN had the Tigers as a seven-point favorite just when kickoff started. This game, however, wasn’t about either team. This game was dominated by Joe Burrow, who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy.

The Sports Squad Report: ATL Utd. wins MLS; AU men’s hoops moves to 5-2

Troy Cracknell (21) launches a jumper over Emmanuel’s Kyler Ingram in AU’s 77-70 win over the Lions before 2,688 at Christenberry Fieldhouse. (photo by Khadijah Sandifer)

Edited by Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor

In the MLS final at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Saturday, Dec. 8, Atlanta Utd. defeated Portland Timbers 2-0 to win the league title in its second year of competition. Josef Martinez and Franco Escobar scored the goals for Atlanta. Keeper Brad Guzan made several key saves for the home team. ATL Manager Gerardo Martino was coaching in his last match for the club as he is moving on to coach the Mexican national team. It was Atlanta’s first major professional championship since the Braves won the World Series in 1995. Elsewhere in sports:

The Sports Squad: AU men back to the nationals; hoops teams sweep Paine (Episode 8)

By Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor

 

The sports news from Augusta University over the weekend (Nov. 16-18) featured the men’s cross country team finishing third in the NCAA Southeast Regional, the basketball teams getting the sweep at Paine College, and the volleyball team finishing its season with a loss to Georgia College in the regional at Wingate, N.C. Former AU student Patrick Reed, the Masters champion, finished second on the European Tour’s order of merit after finishing second in a tournament in Dubai.  In college football news, Georgia (10-1)  crushed the University of Massachusetts 66-27 with more than 700 yards in total offense, and Georgia Tech edged Virginia in overtime 30-27. The Yellow Jackets (7-4) will bring a 6-1 streak after their awful 1-3 start to Sanford Stadium this Saturday (Nov. 24) at noon in a renewal of the in-state rivalry. Tech has won on its last two visits to Athens. Meanwhile, the top six remains the same for the college football playoff, with Alabama at No. 1, followed by Clemson, Notre Dame, Michigan, Georgia and Oklahoma. In the NFL, the Falcons suffered another late loss, this time to Dallas, and in soccer, Atlanta Utd. readies for its MLS semifinal with New York Red Bull, with the first leg set for Sunday, Nov. 25, at 5 p.m. in Atlanta … For all of the weekend’s sports news, click on the link above for The Sports Squad’s weekly sports podcast. The Sports Squad a production of Bell Ringer Media.

The Sports Squad Report: Jaguar men, women XC teams advance to the SE Regionals

UNC Pembroke’s Joshua Chepkesir (L) and Silus Kipkoech running away from the field in in the Peach Belt men’s cross country championship. (photo by Ben Marshall)

Edited by Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor

The Sports Squad Podcast – Episode 6 – Nov. 5 (Click Here)

The Augusta University men’s cross country team took second place in the 2018 Peach Belt Conference Championships Saturday, Nov. 3, at Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site in Beech Island, S.C., finishing just four points behind UNC Pembroke. Augusta had three in the top five in the men’s PBC title race, led by sophomore Hunter Kimball, who finished in third place, clocking in at 24:49.6. Sophomore Jacob Poston placed fourth in 24:57.9, and senior Noah Hulett finished fifth in 24:58.5. The Jaguar women’s cross country team took fifth place. The Jaguars’ Micah Weathers was fifth in the individual race in 18:41.8.  AU junior McKenzie Knudsen was eighth place in 18:57.5. Sophomore Miranda Taylor crossed the line in 19:30.1 to take 22nd. The AU men’s and women’s cross country teams’ next race will be the NCAA Southeast Regional hosted by North Georgia in Oakwood, Ga., on Saturday, Nov 17. In other sports news …

The Sports Squad Report: AU men’s basketball is back, in exhibition at South Carolina

The Jaguars, led by Deane Williams (24), Aaron Byrd (3) and Tyvez Monroe (13), will take on South Carolina Friday, Oct. 26 in Columbia. (staff photo)

Edited by Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor

—>Sports Squad Podcast – Episode 4 – Oct. 22(Click Here)<—

Augusta University men’s basketball is back. The Jaguars kick off the 2018-19 season with a high-profile exhibition game on Friday, Oct. 26 against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C at 6 p.m. “South Carolina is providing us a great opportunity to play within an hour from our campus and we look forward to competing against their storied program,” Augusta Coach Dip Metress said. Recent prestigious Division I opponents have included Clemson, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Wichita State. This is the third-straight season Metress has taken the Jaguars to battle a Division I team in an exhibition matchup. In other sports news:

The Sports Squad report: Braves lose in four games to Dodgers in NLDS

AU men’s basketball coach Dip Metress (R) watches as a youngster takes a jump shot during Ball at the Mall on Oct. 6 at Augusta Mall. (photo by Chris Hutchins)

Edited by Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor

—>Sports Squad Podcast for Oct. 10, 2018<— (Click Here)

After assembling some of baseball’s finest young talent and making a surprising return to the playoffs for the first time since 2013, the Atlanta Braves went down quietly in the postseason. The Baby Braves were shut out twice in Los Angeles before the high-powered Los Angeles Dodgers finished off the best-of-five series with a 6-2 victory in Game 4 on Monday, Oct. 8 in Atlanta. “We’re going to get there, but we’re not there yet,” said Braves manager Brian Snitker. After a massive rebuilding job and three straight 90-loss seasons, the Braves suddenly returned to prominence in large part because of a bountiful farm system led by outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., second baseman Ozzie Albies and a seemingly endless supply of dynamic young pitchers. Snitker, who has labored long in the Braves’ system, certainly will get votes for manager of the year in the National League. Los Angeles plays Milwaukee in the NLCS, and Houston tangles with Boston in the ALCS. In other sports news this week: