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Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
By Mike Farrell - Where's the defense? That's the question that many Notre Dame fans are likely asking these days when they look at the 2007 recruiting class of the Irish. The class is loaded with offensive stars, led by uber-recruit Jimmy Clausen, but offense hasn't been the big problem in two consecutive bowl blowouts.
For those of you who love offense and would prefer that the Irish outscore their opponents rather than simply beat them, your prayers have been answered. Clausen is the most complete quarterback to come out of high school ever - yes, ever. That doesn't mean he'll be the best, but he's ready to play and play right away. Charlie Weis and his staff went out and got three very good wide receiver prospects for Clausen: Duval Kamara, Greg Little and Golden Tate. They also added a great tight end prospect in Mike Ragone. Florida scat-back Armando Allen will add some much needed speed to the running game and will be a dangerous receiver out of the backfield. Throw in five offensive linemen after last year's great haul and the offense looks set for a few years.
Not so with the defense. Notre Dame came into this recruiting year with a few huge needs on defense. They wanted a few linebackers who could move laterally, a couple of big defensive tackles who can stuff the run, at least two defensive ends to provide an outside rush and another cornerback and safety as a bonus. With just a couple of weeks left before Signing Day, they've fallen a bit short.
Aaron Nagel from Illinois was a safety in high school who will try to make the transition to linebacker. However, he lacks size and the quickness Notre Dame needed to add. Pennsylvania's Steve Paskorz also has limited experience at linebacker after playing running back most of his high school career. He's also the same size as Nagel, and has similar speed. North Carolina's Kerry Neal is a good-looking athlete who could play linebacker if needed, but his 6-3, 234 frame makes him more of a defensive end. Clearly the Irish didn't get everything they wanted at linebacker, especially after losing out on Tennessee star Chris Donald to the Vols a couple of weeks ago.
New Jersey defensive end Justin Trattou is a solid player. At 6-4, 230, he is well-coached, shows excellent technique and has excellent football sense. Trattou and Neal make a solid pair of defensive ends, but neither is as explosive off the ball as some of the players ND struck out on like Ben Martin from Ohio (Tennessee) or Martez Wilson from Chicago (Illinois).
Things in the secondary look a bit better. Notre Dame did land South Carolina cornerback Gary Gray, who will be a great addition to the duo of Raeshon McNeil and Darrin Walls from last year, and safety Harrison Smith from Tennessee.
But it's at defensive tackle where the Irish truly struggled. After recruiting nearly every top defensive tackle in the country, Notre Dame looks like they'll be left with Florida's Ian Williams -- whose 6-2 listing is about two inches too generous. That means one or two of the five offensive linemen from this year or last will be converted to d-tackle, which is not a good sign.
The 2007 Notre Dame recruiting class looks like it will be a tale of two sides of the football. On offense, an unquestioned A+ when it comes to talent -- led by the nation's No. 1 player. But the defense remains a question mark for Weis and company heading into the spring unless something surprising happens between now and Feb. 7.
It took a while for the light bulb to go on, but when it did, Jonas Gray finally showed the talent many had expected from the blue-chip prospect from Detroit. In a recent interview, Gray, who is rehabbing an ACL injury to get ready for the NFL Scouting Combine, expressed the confidence and support he has for head coach Brian Kelly.
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The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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