Commentary, predictions, rumors, maybe some smack on sports in Los Angeles
Put on by the players’ union, the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl isn’t just about the game, it’s about what the 104 aspiring future pros could be facing at the next level on and off the field.
We would be out literally in practice, during practice, talking about playing in LA. Honestly. How nice would it be to be practicing in LA? Just go to the mall after practice in LA. It’s such a beautiful day in LA all the time.
Some bold statements and, no doubt, a bit of controversy during Friday’s NFLPA Collegiate Bowl Media Day.
Los Angeles is so attractive. All the people that are out here, all the celebrities. The celebrity that you get from playing for the LA team. All the hookups that you’re going to get — you’re going to go to restaurants and clubs, get clothes. I played in New York, so I saw the big town, the media. There are so many eyes on you it’s a great opportunity
The bold one was St. Louis Rams wide receiver Steve Smith. He said this coming season would be the last for the Rams in St. Louis and that he and his Rams teammates prefer to play in Los Angeles and would be kicking off in the City of Angels in 2014.
Smith, a native of Los Angeles who played his college ball at USC and attended Taft high school in Woodland Hills, Calif. (not coincidentally the same high school and college of current Rams head coach Jeff Fisher.), was one of five expert panelists discussing the return of the NFL to Los Angeles.
“We’re thankful for the city of St. Louis.” Smith said. He continued, “But it’d be a treat to be located back home in Los Angeles.”
Of course, the Rams called Los Angeles home from 1946 until their move to St. Louis to kickoff the 1995 season. They’re now locked in arbitration with the city of St. Louis on the cost to make the Edward Jones Dome a “first tier” NFL stadium and could break their lease after the 2014 season.
I was able to catch up and interview Smith on camera after the panel discussion and asked him to elaborate on his bold predictions regarding the Rams and Los Angeles:
Last year was Smith’s first with the Rams. He played in just nine games catching 14 passes for 131 yards and no touchdowns.
The other expert analysts were ESPN LA’s Arash Markazi, Doug Farrar of Yahoo! Shutdown Corner, Molly Knight of ESPN the Magazine and Liz Mullen from the Sports Business Journal.
Two of these four panelist agreed the Rams would return while one said the San Diego Chargers and Rams would both eventually move to L.A. Another said, “I don’t know.”
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It’s college football all-star game season with the first of a handful of games preparing seniors for that “next level” kicking-off Saturday afternoon.
Prior to Monday night’s game against the Orlando Magic at Staples Center, Los Angeles Clippers all-star point guard Chris Paul addressed the media for the first time since separating his right shoulder in last Friday’s win over the Mavericks in Dallas.
Saying he was done feeling sorry for himself after being put on the injured list for six weeks, Paul and head coach Doc Rivers said he would become a part-time assistant helping out from the bench.
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Wait ‘til next year……
There’s always next year……
See you next year…
Those are just three of the cliché rallying cries in sports. We’ve all yelled them at some point in our sports-loving lives.
Jim Mora and his Bruin gridders improved to 5-2 on the season and 2-2 in conference play after Saturday’s 21-14, PAC-12 win over the Utah Utes at the Rose Bowl.
Prior to comparing off-campus murder statistics on a local radio show, new UCLA head football coach Jim Mora’s main focus was getting his Bruins up to speed on his spread passing offense.
UCLA quarterback Richard Brehaut made a controversial decision when the 2010 football season ended. He decided to also play for the Bruins baseball team immediately after the gridiron season getting then coach Rick Neuheisels blessing as long as football came first.
Much like the Los Angeles Kings, who hoisted their first-ever Stanley Cup earlier this week by being road warriors taking 10 of 11 playoff games away from Staples Center during their title run, the UCLA Bruins baseball team makes itself quite at home on the road as well.
Talk about a Spring wake-up call.
This past March, Bruins men’s head basketball coach Ben Howland was raked over the coals in a Sports Illustrated article calling him a hands-off coach that lost complete control of his team and the program.
On Any Given Sports Day 