Posts for coach

Is There Any Chance Billy King isn’t the Inquirer’s Source on This Story?

Kyle Scott - June 12, 2013

I love the art of masking sources. It happens more than you think in (sports) media, usually so a given subject can make public a piece of news that they desperately want to make public, but one that they can’t make public quite yet (or ever). So, they give the news, then say, “You can acknowledge that I did this, but I wouldn’t comment on this.” 

Anyway, is there any chance that former Sixers GM isn’t the Inquirer’s source on this – kind of random, for a Philly paper – report that Jason Kidd will become the Nets’ next coach:

Former NBA star Jason Kidd is in line to become coach of the Brooklyn Nets for the next three years, a source familiar with the negotiations tells The Inquirer.

Final details of the contract are being worked out, but an announcement is expected this week, the source said.

Kidd met with Nets general manager Billy King on Monday to make a pitch for the coaching job.

One more question: Is Billy King the only GM in sports who would make a retiring player head coach of a team in a major market? That’s crazy. And risky. I mean, even the Flyers start their alumni in bogus PR jobs before putting them in front office positions.

…

Others have pointed out that the owner of the Inquirer used to own the Nets. So… you know.

Mike Rice Hitting His Players

Kyle Scott - April 3, 2013

If you haven’t seen it, here’s the video of Rutgers basketball coach Mike Rice hitting his players. Tremendous reporting by ESPN’s John Barr.

UPDATE: Annnnd… he’s fired.

Chip Kelly Still Thinks He’s a College Coach, and That’s Kinda Cool

Kyle Scott - January 18, 2013

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Chip Kelly with Eagles University legend Vince Papale, who was also a Habitat For Humanity team leader (photo: Eagles)

College coaches do this.

Colleges coaches talk about respected veterans coming back to “speak to the young guys.” College coaches refer to the team as “the program.” College coaches hardly decline any media requests and show up to far-flung events, because any chance to get their face in front of a camera lens – which may have an athletic 6’4, 220 Ib. high school junior connected to the other end – must be taken. College coaches talk about scheduling the best opponents. College coaches show school spirit.

Chip Kelly has done all of those things since arriving in Philadlephia less than 48 hours ago.

He repeatedly referred to the Eagles as a “program” during his press conference yesterday.

This morning, he called into WIP, telling Angelo Cataldi that he was more excited to talk to him than anyone else in the city. Kelly says he listened to WIP while recruiting in the Philly area for New Hampshire. A Red Sox fan, Kelly, who must have referenced wings 600 times during his 15-minute interview with the Morning Show, talked about how his new National League team is the Phillies. He said that the Eagles will take on any challenge and play anybody (good, because that’s what the NFL schedule makers had in mind too). He also said that he will try to attend Wing Bowl and, perhaps, the Kappa Delta ice cream social in the quad. 

He’s program building, after all.

And like I said, program builders honor respected vets. So it should come as no surprise that Kelly showed up to an event honoring Brian Dawkins at Chickie’s and Pete’s in South Philly last night.  

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Chip Kelly with four-year letter winner, All-American and Academic All-American Brian Dawkins

Kelly briefly took the podium, where he said this– the same speech that, while a student at Villanova, I heard Jay Wright give every time Kerry Kittles came anywhere near campus:

“Excited to have [Dawkins] a part of the program. Going to lean on him a lot to tell our young guys exactly how the game is supposed to be played, because that guy played the game the way it was supposed to be played.”

 

The freshman are totally going to be in awe of Dawkins. Other young guys, like LeSean McCoy, one of the best running backs on the planet, maybe less so.

You have to respect Kelly's effort. No doubt that the Eagles PR machine (more later today on the great job they’re doing– seriously), knowing how Andy Reid was hated by basically every local media outlet, is behind much of this. But that’s OK. And it’s OK that since arriving on Wednesday night, Kelly has crossed off most of the items on his List of Philly Things: Santa Claus. Wing Bowl. Phillies. Cataldi and Papale. Showing up at Chickie’s and Pete’s to honor Brian Dawkins and talking about how the Eagles are going to play “like that guy played.” Flyers-Penguins game.

So let Kelly champion “the program” all he wants. It’s refreshing. There will be plenty of time to ask him why, in the hell, he went for it on fourth and 12. For now, let’s just keep fingers-crossed that he shows up to our charity bachelor auction at the Fieldhouse.

Watch Kelly speak about Dawkins after the jump and listen to him on the WIP Morning Show here.

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Heath Evans(?) Says Chip Kelly Could be Worst NFL Coach Ever

Kyle Scott - January 16, 2013


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Heath Evans is basing his whole theory on Stanford beating Oregon that one time:

Now that the Philadelphia Eagles have reeled in perhaps the biggest fish on the coaching market, I am going on the record calling Chip Kelly one of the worst hires in pro football history.

Yes, worse than Steve Spurrier, the old ball coach who is one of college football's top offensive minds ever but who failed miserably in the NFL, going 12-20 in two seasons with the Washington Redskins (2002-03). Kelly, too, is a dynamic college head coach, but what he's about to bring to the NFL simply won't work. Here are three reasons why.

 

Those reasons: 1) you can't recruit in the NFL, 2) that time Oregon lost to Stanford and their pro-style defense, 3) he's going to get his quarterback injured.

What a fucking blowhard.

Mets Bullpen Coach Arrested For DUI

Kyle Scott - March 12, 2012

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Photo: NBC New York

When we used the phrase “the Mets: America’s car accident” at the end of Mets-related posts last year, we meant it as an allegory of sorts, not literally.

Unfortunately, the New York Mets never fail to live up to imagined disaster.

Last night, Mets bullpen catcher Eric Langill was arrested for DUI after crashing into a fountain and flipping his car, according to NBC New York:

Langill, 32, was driving a white Honda Accord Sunday night in Port Saint Lucie when he apparently took a hard right at an intersection ahead of the traffic circle, causing him to drive over a curb and a sidewalk, hit a sign and eventually a concrete fountain, where the car flipped over, according to a police report.

The police report said Langill said he was heading home from a bowling alley and was cut off by another car.

 

Typical. 

Former team beat writer Steve Popper was quick to point out to a colleague that this is just status quo for the Metropolitans:

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Ladies and gentlemen, 2012 Mets: they can’t even afford a sarcastic tagline.

Video: Houston Coach Talks About Victory Over Penn State, Son Digs Himself Some Gold, Eats It

Kyle Scott - January 3, 2012

Oh that’s a winner, kid!

That’s one of those ones that is so springy when you pull it out it flings the top of your nose en route to clear air. And they’re the best ones to eat… which Levine’s son did at the :25 second mark. Cute kid, though.

H/T to reader David for sending

Here’s CSN’s Awful In-Game Commercial Featuring Their Online Coach and Tim Panaccio’s Twitter

Kyle Scott - November 4, 2011

It seems CSN pulled one out of the national TV playbook. 

On Monday, we discussed NBC’s decision to prominently feature Brian Williams during the Sunday Night Football broadcast, a tactic used to help promote their new show, Rock Center (Mondays at 10!!!). It’s a clever, usually not-so-subtle trick performed by networks to promote their other products. FOX does it a lot with actors from the cast of Glee and other bubble-gummity flavors of the season. They use guerrilla tactics, too: In June, they planted the star of the then upcoming FX show Wilfred in the stands at CBP (uncomfortable note: I look exactly like Wilfred in my grey Forever Lazy. Except for the ears). And, in 2009, randomly cut to shots of The Observer from Fringe sitting in the crowd at baseball games.

Sometimes, that stuff can be funny. Clever even. Sure, I’ll giggle at a giant, floppy dog seated in 90 degree heat. Lea Michele in any context? You bet!

… But, other times, these stunts are gratuitous, unoriginal, and shameful.

Enter CSN Philly Online Coach.

To be honest, I actually enjoy the commercials which show the coach (an actor) talking to CSNPhilly.com writers. It’s not easy to promote scriptuals and media personalities, so I’m for any attempt to breath some life into these folks. Plus, the actor is quasi-funny.

Last night, however, CSN’s synergistic promotion attempt missed wiiiide right.

What’s not to love about overstepping the conflict-of-interest line (Comcast owns the Flyers, too) and shamelessly plugging your fictional character to promote an admittedly improved web offering? 

Everything.

Just take a look at that video at the top of this post. Tim Panaccio is a beat writer, not a Flyers employee or usually part of CSN’s in-game on-air talent. How many other reporters were allowed outside the Flyers’ locker room between the second and third periods? None.

And what the hell was that, anyway? A low-level producer (taking orders from on-high) trying to sharpen his portfolio for an upcoming WWE opening? I fully expected Kane to pop out from behind Scott Hartnell’s flow and take a goalie stick to the back of the coach’s head while Panotch – the frightened accomplice – ran off like he saw nothing (actually, that would have been awesome). 

Just see the look of disdain on Jody Shelley’s face as he had to walk by that mess. Why the hell is Panotch doing improv outside our locker room?

It wasn’t just the cut-scene, however. They kept it up, both before and after that unfortunate plug. Multiple times (I lost count), cameras cut to CSNPOC talking to fans and acting generally douchey throughout The Well. In fact, he even got some face-time when Max Talbot was brought down on his breakaway.

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Morning Puck: Screwed by Elias

Kyle Scott - November 4, 2011

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So it was not to be. For the second night in a row, the Flyers got themselves into trouble after obtaining an early lead. On Wednesday, they were able to hang on for the 3-2 victory against the Buffalo Sabres. Last night, however, the Devils erased the Flyers’ 2-0 lead and won the game in a shootout when long-time Devil that goddamn assassin, Patrick Elias, slipped a Devils’ win under Sergei Bobrovsky’s left leg. For sad.

It wasn’t all bad, though.

It was an entertaining hockey game, and certainly a lot better than the alternative– watching the Union struggle to finish like a band geek who’s yet to “learn her own body” (graphic, but true. mostly). For realsies, I don’t know much about soccer (I’m trying), but their strategy for the series amounted to: go deep to Le Toux. It was the futbol equivalent of throwing hail marys to DeSean Jackson for four quarters. Only if DeSean Jackson were lanky. And French.

Nice strategy, Nowak.

***

Back to the hockey game.

It wasn’t all bad. Zac Rinaldo scored his first NHL goal on a sweet pass from Sean Couturier. Rinaldo celebrated by punching out the ref for “pointing at him that way.”

Max Talbot scored on a penalty shot in which he used his circle the airport move– drifting wide, in front of the Devils’ bench, then slicing across the slot.

It went a lot better than his other penalty shot:

“Yeah, well it’s the second one of my career. I had one last year or two years ago. And missing that by about 5 feet, it was nice to have a second chance and actually put it in the net.” 

 

Jaromir Jagr showed of his moves – again – using a modified version of Talbot’s circle the airport. He swung wide, went behind the net, mesmerized the defense, and hit a lonely Claude Giroux, who put the cookies he was baking into the oven before slamming the puck into the back of the wide open net. 

And it was nice to see the Pennsylvania Lottery brought back their holiday commercial for the 19th straight year. Really.*

*My dad told me that he thought it’s been on since before he got married (1980), but, according to some guy on YouTube, it started airing in 1992. 1992. In 1992, Lenny Dykstra was still alive.

Now the ugly parts.

The Flyers blew their first lead by playing awful for most of the second period. The Devils fired 21 shots, the third-most they’ve ever had in one period against the Flyers, and most since 1997.

Then the CSN Philly coach showed up…

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Immediate Twitter reaction:

(@TurkFebruary22)

it made me bite my arm til i was bleeding and kick my dog in the face….ok i lied about the dog part but i thought about it

 

(@jharkins1216)

I would purchase every web-capable device to log onto CSN Philly if they had the Ice Girls promoting it and not that douche

 

(@mikebiff)

Can we tie up "Hip-Hop", hide him somewhere in South America and send the "CSN Coach" to go find him?

 

AP's Dan Gelston

Fleetwood Mac would be proud. CSN Philly coach needs to go first over hip hop in a Landslide

 

(@Languedoctor)

so forced, so uncomfortable. Makes the Stan Lee superhero project last year look good. 

 

Don’t worry, we’ll have much more on this later…

In the shootout, Danny Briere scored his Luis Mendoza goal (video here) before Elias scored the winner and continued his dominance of the Flyers (his 32 goals are the most against any team).

Quote of the day? Bill Clement on Postgame Live:

"I'm surprised they [Flyers] had any toes left because they were shooting their own feet left and right."

 

The wasn’t Clement's lone highlight, though. He came back from break on the phone: 

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Video of that and highlights are after the jump. Your photo gallery is here. JVR is day-to-day. Anthony SanFilippo has a list of confirmed Alumni game players. David Gryzbowski interviews Clement.

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