Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Terry's Championship Ink

Over the last month or so, we've covered a few different NBA tattoos, including one that honors a video game character and one that celebrates a family tree.

As the NBA Finals are ready to tip off tonight, the ink in the spotlight is Jason Terry's Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy tatt on his right bicep.

Before a preseason game last fall in Orlando, Terry's teammate and tattoo connoisseur DeShawn Stevenson hosted the team at his home and brought his personal tattoo artist in for the players. Terry decided to get the championship trophy tattooed on his arm showing the team that they had a legitimate shot to win the title this season.

Terry was so confident in his team that he left room on the trophy for more ink so he could fill in the date of the championship. However, the Dallas sixth-man told reporters on Sunday that he will get the tattoo removed if his squad loses to the Heat in the NBA Finals.

"I definitely know that it will hurt worse if I have to take this thing off than it did putting it on," Terry said, according to ESPNDallas.com's Tim MacMahon.

"When he first got the tattoo, I said he was crazy," Stevenson said of the tattoo that is on the inside of Terry's arm. "I didn't say it to him. But I've never been to the [NBA Finals], and for him to have that now. Wow. And he got that tattoo in October, and it means a lot with what we've been through."

The Mavs face the Heat in Game 1 of the NBA Finals tonight at 9pm ET on ABC.

Behind Blake's "Rage"

Earlier this month, we posted a new commercial for the upcoming first-person shooter game, "Rage" starring Clippers F Blake Griffin.

The NBA's Rookie of the Year and Slam Dunk Champ wants to be in the game so bad that he's been stalking id Software's office in Dallas.

Below is some behind-the-scenes footage and outtakes from Griffin dunking over a tiger and scaling an office building in a motion-capture suit.

Friday, May 27, 2011

WTA's "Sugar and Spice"

The Women's Tennis Association has launched a new ad campaign called "Strong is Beautiful" featuring some of the game's best and most attractive players.

The first in a series of commercials, "Sugar and Spice" focuses on all of the characteristics necessary to become a successful professional tennis player and stars Sam Stosur, Ana Ivanovic, Li Na, Caroline Wozniacki, Vera Zvonareva, Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka and Kim Clijsters.



Hat tip to Game On!

Can Spud Still Dunk?

Although he is 47-years-old and at least 25 pounds above his former playing weight, 1986 NBA Slam Dunk Champ Spud Webb appears to throwdown in an online video for GameProvenExecutive, a career building company exclusively for current and former athletes.

It looks like Webb has some help getting above the rim, but it is still worth checking out.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

HBO's new Roach Show

Have no fear sports reality TV fans, HBO's next great series is in the works.

With the network's "Hard Knocks" series in doubt as the NFL lockout is still in affect and no team seems to want to sign up for the show, HBO announced that it will team up with "Friday Night Lights" director/exec producer Peter Berg for the "On Freddie Roach" reality series.

The show will follow boxing trainer Freddie Roach, who is fighting Parkinson's disease, as he works with young boxers, entertains celebrity visitors at his Wildcard Boxing Club in Hollywood and manages his new role with USA Boxing.

Roach and his star pupil Manny Pacquiao have been the subject of multiple editions of HBO's "24/7" along with the recent "Fight Camp 360" on Showtime while getting ready to fight Shane Mosley earlier this month.

"I am used to it," Roach told ESPN.com about having the cameras around him constantly. "Pretty much the same deal as '24/7' and 'Fight Camp' with cameras there at 5 a.m. and waking me up. They have the keys to my house to get in.

"It's going to be my life at home and mostly everything in the gym leading up to fights. It doesn't bother me having the cameras around. Sometimes it gets overwhelming and if it does, I tell them to go home."

HBO's cameras will follow Roach as he works with his fighters, including Pacquiao, junior welterweight titlist Amir Khan and middleweight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

The six-episode series is set to debut in early 2012

Beckham can tackle

Former Manchester United star David Beckham returned to his former club yesterday to support his best friend and longtime teammate Gary Neville’s testimonial match.

This was Beckham's first appearance for ManU since leaving for Real Madrid in 2003.

The LA Galaxy star defender surprisingly played the full 90 minutes in a 2-1 loss to Italian club Juventus but more importantly showed off some pretty nice tackling skills when a fan ran onto the pitch.




Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Prince Goes Around the World

In their new "Always Epic" ad starring Brewers star Prince Fielder, the MLB borrows a commercial concept first seen in an old Nike spot featuring Ken Griffey Jr. and Don Mattingly.

Nonetheless, check out Fielder getting a hold of one during batting practice.



Hat tip to Big League Stew

Monta's New Ink

A few weeks ago, we posted an image of Jazz F Andrei Kirilenko's incredible World of Warcraft-inspired back tattoo. Calling it "the worst tattoo in the NBA," we thought we'd never see another ink display that would match this offseason.

Although it doesn't compare to the insanity of AK47's back, check out Warriors G Monta Ellis' “Family First” chest tatt that literally pays homage to his family tree.

Monday, May 23, 2011

New D.Rose Spot Debuts Tonight

A new adidas basketball commercial starring NBA MVP Derrick Rose debuts tonight on ESPN during Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.

In the new spot, D.Rose tells us to remember the number "9.8." According to the MVP, it isn't how much time is left on the shot clock or seconds left in the game, but the weight in ounces of the new adidas adiZero Crazy Light, which is the lightest basketball shoe ever made.

The commercial follows Rose around the streets of his hometown with the soundtrack provided by rapper Big Sean‘s new track, “I Do It."

Cam's Karaoke "Skills"

Since former Auburn QB Cam Newton burst onto the sports scene last year, we've covered his on-field success, legal issues, pro potential and most importantly his dougie skills...or lack thereof.

Add karaoke to the list of things Newton need to work on as he enters the NFL. The #1 overall selection grabbed the microphone during a break at Panini rookie card shoot in Los Angeles over the weekend and attempted to sing Justin Bieber’s “Baby” and Juelz Santana’s “There It Go (The Whistle Song).”

Playboy's Mars Blackmon

On May 31, Playboy Magazine will rank the top 23 Air Jordans ever and to promote the list, they've created a video with with Miss August 2010 Francesca Frigo playing Spike Lee's famous "Mars Blackmon" character.

Frigo's portrayal is definitely a bit more exciting than Blake Griffin's version from a few months back.


Alley-oop to Game On!

Friday, May 20, 2011

Blake Has Got Some Major Rage

Clipper F Blake Griffin wants to be in the upcoming video game RAGE so bad that he's been stalking id Software's office in Dallas.

Griffin shows off some moves and even jumps over a tiger in the :90 spot below for the first-person shooter game for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Good to see the Slam Dunk Champ show off some personality for a change. RAGE hits stores September 13.

Big Papi's NY State of Mind

Red Sox DH David Ortiz is tired of getting booed by Yankees fans and decided to try win the city over, one person at a time.

In this short film below from MLB, "Big Papi" tries to get some love from his rival fans with random acts of hugging on the streets of New York.

KD Posterizes Haywood

With Bulls F Taj Gibson and Heat F Udonis Haslem putting on a dunking exhibition in the Eastern Conference Finals, Thunder F Kevin Durant got into the highlight action last night.

Check out KD's insane dunk on Mavs C Brendan Haywood.

Abdul-Jabbar Unhappy With Lakers

Lakers Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar went on a media tour yesterday to not only promote his new documentary, "On the Shoulders of Giants" but to also make known his dissapointment with his former organization.

Abdul-Jabbar began his tour with an in-studio interview with ESPN's "Mike & Mike in the Morning," where he explained his comments made to The Sporting News this week in which he said he felt "slighted" that the Lakers have not erected a statue of him outside Staples Center.

By the time he appeared on Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" last night, Abdul-Jabbar cooled down a little bit. Check out his interview below.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

ESPN Dominates Sports Biz Awards

ESPN was the big winner at the fourth annual Sports Business Awards, held last night at the Marriott Marquis in N.Y. The network took home awards for Best in Sports Television, Best in Sports Media and Executive of the Year.

In accepting the award for Executive of the Year, ESPN/ABC Sports President George Bodenheimer dedicated the award to the company’s 6,500 employees. “For ESPN and our culture, there is no I, only we,” he said.

Past and present ESPN employees will be front and center next week as a tell-all book, "Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN," hits stores.

The highly anticipated book details the personalities, drama, partying and legal issues behind ESPN's rise from a small-time cable network in 1979 to the world's most dominant sports news brand.

If your like me and can't wait for your copy to arrive, check out USA Today's top 10 "feuds, foibles and embarrassments" detailed in "Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN."

Rookie Premiere Kicks Off Today

Although the NFL is still in the midst of a lockout, 36 NFL Draft picks will attend today's Rookie Premiere at the L.A. Coliseum. Hosted by the licensing and marketing arm of the NFLPA, the future rookies will pose for photos used on various trading cards.

With a ProFootballTalk.com report yesterday saying that for the first time ever, the rookies will wear their college uniforms, the NFLPA has announced that the rookies will be sport their NFL jerseys but with their college numbers.

It will be interesting since Cam Newton will wear a Panthers jersey with #2 even though that number currently belongs to Jimmy Clausen.

Here is the full list of Rookie Premiere attendees:

Jon Baldwin, WR- Pittsburgh (Kansas City Chiefs)
Vincent Brown, WR- San Diego State (San Diego Chargers)
Delone Carter, RB- Syracuse (Indianapolis Colts)
Randall Cobb, WR- Kentucky (Green Bay Packers)
Andy Dalton, QB- TCU (Cincinnati Bengals)
Marcell Dareus, DT- Alabama (Buffalo Bills)
Blaine Gabbert, QB- Missouri (Jacksonville Jaguars)
AJ Green, WR- Georgia (Cincinnati Bengals)
Alex Green, RB- Hawaii (Green Bay Packers)
Leonard Hankerson, WR- Miami (Washington Redskins)
Jamie Harper, RB- Clemson (Tennessee Titans)
Kendall Hunter, RB- Oklahoma State (San Francisco 49ers)
Mark Ingram, RB- Alabama (New Orleans Saints)
Jerrel Jernigan, WR- Troy (New York Giants)
Julio Jones, WR- Alabama (Atlanta Falcons)
Taiwan Jones, RB- E. Washington (Oakland Raiders)
Colin Kaepernick, QB- Nevada (San Francisco 49ers)
Mikel Leshoure, RB- Illinois (Detroit Lions)
Greg Little, WR- North Carolina (Cleveland Browns)
Jake Locker, QB- Washington (Tennessee Titans)
Ryan Mallett, QB- Arkansas (New England Patriots)
Von Miller, LB- Texas A&M (Denver Broncos)
DeMarco Murray, RB- Oklahoma (Dallas Cowboys)
Cam Newton, QB- Auburn (Carolina Panthers)
Austin Pettis, WR- Boise State (St. Louis Rams)
Christian Ponder, QB- Florida State (Minnesota Vikings)
Bilal Powell, RB- Louisville (New York Jets)
Stevan Ridley, RB- LSU (New England Patriots)
Kyle Rudolph, TE- Notre Dame (Minnesota Vikings)
Torrey Smith, WR- Maryland (Baltimore Ravens)
Daniel Thomas, RB- Kansas State (Miami Dolphins)
Jordan Todman, RB- Connecticut (San Diego Chargers)
Shane Vereen, RB- California (New England Patriots)
Ryan Williams, RB Va. Tech (Arizona Cardinals)
Titus Young, WR- Boise State (Detroit Lions)

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Bolt Named World's Most Marketable Athlete

In this week's issue of SportsPro Magazine, the London-based sports business outlet names Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt the most marketable athlete in the world.

The three-time World and Olympic gold medalist sprinted past LeBron James, who held the spot in 2010 and fell to No. 2 in the magazine's Top 50.

International soccer stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi rank No. 3 and 4 and Formula One racer Lewis Hamilton rounds out the top 5.

The top 10 looks like: Sebastian Vettel (7), the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony (6), Olympic swimming champ Michael Phelps (8), tennis' world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki (9) and Indian cricket star Mahendra Singh Dhoni (10).

18 sports are represented, including seven NBA players, three MLB players, two NHL stars and four NFL players. Interesting to note that Colts QB Peyton Manning didn't make the list but Jets QB Mark Sanchez, Broncos QB Tim Tebow and Rams QB Sam Bradford joined Patriots QB Tom Brady on the list.

Dirk's Crazy Stat Line

In case you missed Dirk Nowitzki's insanely efficient stat line last night, his 48 points (on only 15 shots, 24-24 from free throw line) lead the Mavs to a 121-112 win over the Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.

The coolest part of Nowitzki's performance was that all but two of his NBA record free throws (#6 and #22) were perfect swishes. Check out the video below for proof.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

NBA Wordplay PSA

One day after Phoenix Suns president/chief executive Rick Welts revealed to NBA commissioner David Stern that he was gay, two members of his team - Grant Hill and Jared Dudley - filmed a PSA to address the use of anti-gay language among teens. (Ironically, that night Kobe Bryant called a referee a derogatory slur and earned a $100,000 fine from the league).

Below is the first PSA starring Hill and Dudley and created by the NBA, The Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and the Ad Council.

Another Milan Celebration

Last week, we posted a video of AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrating the Serie A title by kicking teammate Antonio Cassano in the head as he was conducting a live TV interview.

Video has now surfaced of an even more incredible AC Milan championship celebration.

According to Rizzo Sports, AC Milan's championship celebration stated out with a massive parade through the streets Milan, then lead to their stadium, as they still had a game to play (they won 4-1), then followed by the trophy presentation. Finally midfielder Kevin Prince Boateng did a pretty incredible Michael Jackson impersonation, followed by fireworks.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Berry & Spiller's Acting Debut

With the NFL still in a lockout, 2nd year pros Eric Berry of the Chiefs and C.J. Spiller of the Bills are working on their acting (and mutton) chops.

The duo stars as "Coach Light" and "Coach Fast" in an adidas video series promoting the adiZero 5-Star, the lightest cleat in football.

In the throwback infomercial-style videos below, Berry and Spiller show fans how to make lightweight football gear, by using some pretty heavy machinery.

Terps' Hidden Ball Trick

We've seen the hidden ball trick many times in football and baseball, but very rarely in lacrosse.

In their NCAA Tournament first round match vs. North Carolina yesterday, Maryland showed off the very impressive trick play, leading to an easy goal.

Rooney's Championship Celebration

After Manchester United locked up their 19th league title with a 1-1 draw against Blackburn on Saturday, star forward Wayne Rooney celebrated the championship his own unique way.

Rooney shaved his chest hair into a "19" to celebrate and tweeted this picture along with a one-word message: "Champions."

Friday, May 13, 2011

Baldwin vs. Krasinski II

Last month we posted the first installment of New Era Cap's season-long ad campaign focusing on MLB rivalries and starring Yankees fan Alec Baldwin and Red Sox supporter John Krasinski.

Here is the second national TV spot debuting today of the NBC comedy duo showing off their MLB loyalties.

The spots will run during games throughout the season on ESPN, Fox, YES Network and NESN. Cable channels including Comedy Central, Adult Swim, Spike, FX, SportsNet N.Y. and others will also participate.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Drunk Oregon St. Radio Host Eats Napkin

We've all late night meals at Denny's, but have any of you been so "hydrated" that you ate a napkin?

Mike Parker, the play-by-play voice for Oregon State athletics, confirmed yesterday that the YouTube video circulating the Internet of an drunk man eating a napkin is him.

The video has been online for three months, but word broke yesterday that it starred Parker, who is 52 and in his 12th season calling games for Oregon State as part of the Beaver Sports Radio Network.

Jokes aside, Parker said he has had "some long-standing issues with alcohol" that he has dealt with off and on for several years. He said he has been working with a sponsor for the last seven weeks and plans to talk about the video on his daily radio show today.

AC Milan PDA

Italian soccer powerhouse AC Milan won the Serie A title over the weekend and after the team's match, Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrated the championship by kicking teammate Antonio Cassano in the head. Perfect timing as Cassano was giving a live TV interview when Ibrahimovic decided to show his affection.

Angels Set Another World Record

A year ago, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim set a Guinness Book of World Record mark for most Snuggies in one place when they sported Hideki Matsui Snuggies during the fifth inning of a game against the Twins.

One World Record wasn't enough for the 21-16 Angels, as last night the team set a new record for most people wearing "costumed masks" at the same time.

For about 10 minutes in the fifth inning against the White Sox about 40,128 fans (along with the broadcasters) sported the Angels wrestling mask courtesy of Cacique U.S.A.

Seahawks duo pranks Goodell

Seahawks DE Raheem Brock and G Chester Pitts are doing their part to end the current NFL lockout but putting in calls to league commissioner Roger Goodell.

Check out the video below of the Seattle duo doing their best NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith and President Obama impressions in prank calls to Goodell.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Orakpo's Golf Swing

Last week, we posted a video of TNT's Charles Barkley showing off his horific golf swing at a Pro-Am in Alabama. Thanks to CSNWashington, we have footage of an even worse swing.

Check out Redskins DE Brian Orakpo wiffing a few times at his Leukemia Golf Classic yesterday. This is proof that NFL players will be completely lost if the lockout isn't lifted.

At least Barkley made contact with his golf ball last week.

Rooney's Expensive Day at the Park

After his club advanced to the Champion's League Final, Manchester United star Wayne Rooney took his wife and 1-year-old son to Knowsley Safari Park for what he thought would be a quiet family outing. However, the park's animals must have been Chelsea FC fans because they did a little damage to the Rooney's ride.

While the family was checking out the park exhibits, a couple of monkeys jumped all over Rooney's $130,000 Audi RS6 Quattro, destroying the windshield wipers and a rear view mirror.

Thankfully Mrs. Rooney snapped a few photos and posted to her Twitter page.

Kirilenko's new ink



Now that Nuggets F Kenyon Martin got his lips tattoo covered on his neck, Jazz F Andrei Kirilenko is giving Heat F Udonis Haslem a run for his money as having the worst tattoo in the NBA.

AK47 recently got a huge back tatt of a World of Warcraft character riding a dragon.

FOX Salt Lake City's Rick Aaron was told that the tattoo is a depiction of Kirilenko's character on from the popular online video game -- a level 80 paladin, riding on a dragon. In the game, paladins are holy knights, mostly effective against the undead and demons with talents such as consecration, exorcism and holy shock.

AK’s new work was done by Painted Temple in Sugarhouse, Utah.

Monday, May 9, 2011

Manny's Musical Evening

Although Saturday night's Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley fight was a bit of a yawner, the musical performances of the evening made it all worth while.

Tyrese once again sang the national anthem and LL Cool J performed "Momma Said Knock You Out" as Mosley entered the ring, but the pre-match highlight was Pacquiao walking out to a live version of his familiar entrance song, "Eye of the Tiger."

The music didn't end there though. After defeating Mosley in 12 rounds, Pacquiao performed a two-hour concert with his band at the afterparty.







Dwight's weekend with Chewy

While the Lakers were getting embarrassed by the Mavs and the Celtics battled back with the Heat, recently swept Magic C Dwight Howard was hanging with Chewbacca over the weekend at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

As the Lakers' latest dynasty has ended, might it be time for the three-time Defensive Player of the Year to take his talents to the real Hollywood?

Red Bull launches lifestyle magazine

Red Bull today will announce plans to publish a sports lifestyle magazine in the U.S. called "The Red Bulletin," with the June issue launching later this week.

The magazine is already published in nine countries outside of the U.S. and the first American issue will have a circulation of 1.2 million and will feature a cover profile of Giants P Tim Lincecum.

The $4.99 magazine will have 75,000 copies on newsstands and will also be available by subscription at $12 for 12 issues.

On the third Sunday of each month, the majority of the copies will be tucked inside five Sunday newspapers: Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, The Miami Herald and The Houston Chronicle.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Barkley's epic golf swing

TNT's Charles Barkley has one of the most entertaining golf swings around and on Wednesday he treated us to yet another epic display.

Playing in the Regions Traditions Pro-Am in Alabama, Sir Charles not only showed off his crazy hitch in his swing, but the NBA legend broke the head off his driver and it "went farther than his ball."

Check out the footage below, featuring his (racist) playing pro, Fuzzy Zoeller asking Chuck, "Are you playing a black Nike?"

Champion drops Mendenhall over Osama Tweets

Champion announced last night that the company is dropping endorser Steelers RB Rashard Mendenhall because of his controversial Tweets questioning the celebration over the death of Osama bin Laden.

Champion spokesperson Matt Hall said that the brand is ending its relationship with Mendenhall because he can no longer "appropriately represent Champion."

Before deleting it from his Twitter feed, Mendenhall wrote he has "a hard time believing a plane could take a skyscraper down demolition style."

Mendenhall first signed with the Hanesbrands subsidiary in '08 and recently signed a four-year extension of his endorsement deal through '15.

Here is the full statement from Champion:
Champion is a strong supporter of the government's efforts to fight terrorism and is very appreciative of the dedication and commitment of the U.S. Armed Forces. Earlier this week, Rashard Mendenhall, who endorses Champion products, expressed personal comments and opinions regarding Osama bin Laden and the September 11 terrorist attacks that were inconsistent with the values of the Champion brand and with which we strongly disagreed. In light of these comments, Champion was obliged to conduct a business assessment to determine whether Mr. Mendenhall could continue to effectively communicate on behalf of and represent Champion with consumers. While we respect Mr. Mendenhall's right to express sincere thoughts regarding potentially controversial topics, we no longer believe that Mr. Mendenhall can appropriately represent Champion and we have notified Mr. Mendenhall that we are ending our business relationship. Champion has appreciated its association with Mr. Mendenhall during his early professional football career and found him to be a dedicated and conscientious young athlete. We sincerely wish him all the best.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

LeBron Launches Energy Strips Brand

A week ago, we posted an awesome ad for Sheets Brand Energy Strips starring Nuggets F Danilo Gallinari and now more info on the company has come to light.

LeBron James and LRMR CEO Maverick Carter announced yesterday that they have teamed with Dale & Thomas Popcorn Founder Warren Struhl and Marquis Jet Partners co-Founder Jesse Itzler to form PureBrands LLC, a holding company whose inaugural product will be the energy strips featured in Gallinari's video.

The product launch is set for June and will be supported initially with a $10M marketing campaign leveraging Sheets' relationship with James, Gallinari, Knicks F Amar'e Stoudemire, Ravens RB Ray Rice and musicians Drake and Pitbull.

NFLN sets "Thursday Night Football" Booth

Unfortunately for football fans, NFL Network's "Thursday Night Football" booth won't include Gus Johnson next season but the network's new duo is a huge upgrade from the horrible trio of Bob Papa, Matt Millen and Joe Theismann.

NFL Network announced today that Mike Mayock will be joined in the booth by veteran play-by-play announcer Brad Nessler to call the eight Thursday night primetime games, assuming there is a season.

Mayock has been an analyst on NFL Network for the past seven years and is head and shoulders above the ESPN NFL Draft "experts."

Nessler will continue to serve as a play-by-play voice for college football and basketball games on ESPN and ABC.

If there is a NFL season next fall, here is the schedule for NFL Network's "Thursday Night Football."

Week 10: Thursday, November 10 at 8:00 PM ET
Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers

Week 11: Thursday, November 17 at 8:00 PM ET
New York Jets at Denver Broncos

Week 12: Thursday, November 24 at 8:00 PM ET
San Francisco 49ers at Baltimore Ravens (Thanksgiving)

Week 13: Thursday, December 1 at 8:00 PM ET
Philadelphia Eagles at Seattle Seahawks

Week 14: Thursday, December 8 at 8:00 PM ET
Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 15: Thursday, December 15 at 8:00 PM ET
Jacksonville Jaguars at Atlanta Falcons

Week 15: Saturday, December 17 at 8:00 PM ET
Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 16: Thursday, December 22 at 8:00 PM ET
Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts

Pepto-Bismol Celebrates Cinco de Mayo

To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, Pepto-Bismol is launching an online ad featuring Reds P Aroldis Chapman, who holds the MLB record for the fastest pitch thrown.

CBSSPORTS.com's C. Trent Rosecrans points out that the holiday celebrates the Mexican army's victory over the French in 1862 and although "Chapman is in it and he's Cuban and not Mexican, it's a decent commercial, I guess."

Pepto-Bismol is made by Procter & Gamble, which is based in Cincinnati.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Right Guard Launches "Love in the Shower" Campaign

Timberwolves rebounding machine Kevin Love was recently named the NBA's Most Improved Player and now, Right Guard, the league's official deodorant and body wash, has named him the "Best Smelling Player."

Love has signed a deal to become spokesman for the brand's new Right Guard Total Defense 5 Body Wash line and the partnership is in conjunction with a "Love in the Shower" TV/online campaign.

Via the brand's Facebook page, Right Guard is asking fans to submit alternate endings to Love's TV spots, offering a chance to win tickets to the NBA Finals in June along with Love autographed gear, gift cards to NBAStore.com and a year's supply of Right Guard Total Defense 5 Body Wash.

You can check out Love's two Right Guard commercials, "Towel Toss" and "Loofah Love" here.

D.Rose wins MVP

As expected, the NBA named Bulls PG Derrick Rose the league's MVP, making him the youngest winner in history.

However, winning the MVP shouldn't come as a surprise to Rose since during a preseason press conference, he asked media "Why can't I be MVP?"

"The way I look at it within myself, why not? Why can't I be the MVP of the League? Why can't I be the best player in the League? I don't see why-why-why can't I do that? I think I work hard, I think I dedicate myself to the game and sacrifice a lot of things at a young age and I know if I continue to do good, what I can get out of it and if that's me going out or doing whatever, I'm willing to do it because I know in the long run, it's going to help me."

He definitely backed his words up on the court as he was the only player ranked in the league’s top ten in scoring (25 ppg) and assists (7.7 apg), leading the Bulls to their first 60 win season and No. 1 NBA Playoff seed since 1997-98.

Rose and the Bulls are down 1-0 to the Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals and face off tonight at 8pm ET on TNT.

Check out a nice video from Rose's sponsor adidas, honoring the youngest MVP in NBA history.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Hawks Leave Tickets for Jameer

After the Magic and Bulls played last month, Orlando PG Jameer Nelson told MVP-to-be Derrick Rose, "catch you in the second round."

Unfortunately for Nelson, the Magic lost to the Hawks in the first round last week. However, the Hawks' PR department didn't want Nelson to suffer, so they left him two tickets to last night's Hawks-Bulls game, in which Atlanta won 103-95.

Early look at 2012 NFL Draft

Although the 2011 NFL Draft was only a few days ago, it is never too early to preview next year's prospects. Here is sneak peek of the top NCAA players eligible for the 2012 NFL Draft.

Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford: Would have been obvious #1 pick this year. Will be interesting to see which teams tank next season for a shot at the Heisman front-runner.

Alshon Jeffery, WR, South Carolina: The latest in line of big, athletic SEC wideouts (see Green, A.J. and Jones, Julio) Jeffery will be one of the top players available next year, regardless of the QB situation in Columbia.

Cliff Harris, CB, Oregon: The top DB in next year's class, Harris is great coverage man who can also dominate in the return game. Harris led the country in passes defended (23) and passes broken up (17).

Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina: The latest defensive beast to come out of UNC. At 6'6" 270 lbs, he reminds scouts of former Tar Heel star and 2002 #2 overall pick Julius Peppers. Coples had 59 tackles and 10 sacks last season.

Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State: Had he declared for this year's draft, Blackmon would be right up there with A.J. Green and Julio Jones. Caught 111 passes for 1,782 yards and 20 touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore

Matt Kalil, T, USC: Younger brother of Panthers Pro Bowler, Ryan Kalil, Matt is so good that the Trojans had to move Cowboys first round pick Tyron Smith to the right side of the line.

Jonathan Martin, T, Stanford: Protecting Luck's blindside, Martin's size and athleticism will continue to be on display. The 6'6" 310 lb. lineman will continue to improve and should be in contention for the Outland Trophy in '11.

Matt Barkley, QB, USC: Likely the 2nd rated QB on the board next year, Barkley will continue to showcase his pro-ready arm and good decision making. In his second year as QB1, the sophomore threw 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Jared Crick, DE, Nebraska: The next great Nebraska defensive lineman, Crick has the versatility to play tackle in a 4-3 or end in a 3-4. He registered 9.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss last season.

Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma: The big, strong-armed signal caller will continue to put up huge numbers in Norman. Jones completes 65.6% of his passes and threw 38 touchdowns as a sophomore.

Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama: A better pro prospect than Saints first round pick Mark Ingram, Richardson can contribute both in the run and passing games. As a sophomore, he rushed for 658 yards on a 6.5 YPC average and caught 22 balls for 254 receiving yards.

Vontaze Burfict, ILB, Arizona State: An explosive, violent but often undisciplined 'backer, Burfict had a monster sophomore season with 90 tackles and 8.5 TFL.

Ray-Ray Armstrong, S, Miami: At 6'3" 220 lbs. Armstrong reminds Canes fans of the late Sean Taylor. Armstrong had 79 tackles and three interceptions last season.

Luke Kuechly, ILB, Boston College: A starter since he arrived at BC, Kuechly is a tackling machine. He led the nation in tackles last season and has registered 325 tackles, four interceptions, three sacks and two forced fumbles in his two seasons.

Heyward's "This is SportsCenter" Spot

In the latest "This is SportsCenter" commercial, Braves slugger Jason Heyward explains how his baseball bats are made and in the process offends Stanford's mascot.

Nash Leaves Mark in New Toyota Spot

Although his NBA season has been over for a few weeks now, environmentally-friendly Suns point guard Steve Nash will still be on TV during the playoffs.

Check out his new TV spot for Toyota, where he cruises to practice in his Prius and leaves his mark on autograph-seeking fans.

Rex on Letterman

Jets coach Rex Ryan appeared on CBS' "The Late Show with David Letterman" last night to promote his new book, "Play Like You Mean It" and to talk everything Jets.

Letterman and Ryan chatted about Brett Favre's "thing," the Sal Alosi sideline tripping incident, why football is better than soccer and how the Jets plan on beating the Patriots and Giants next year.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Sports World Reacts

With news breaking last night that a U.S. military operation killed Osama bin Laden, it doesn't seem appropriate to blog about anything else today.

Below are a few reactions from the sports world, including a pretty amazing display at Citizens Bank Ballpark in Philadelphia during the Mets-Phillies game on ESPN. News of bin Laden's death had just broke and fans were getting the updates from their mobile devices.



Here are a few Tweets from some NFL players last night:





Also, here is a collection of newspaper front pages from around the country.