BY: Tony LiebertArguing who the greatest high school football player is always quite the popular topic. I struggled to do the same, but I decided to just find the best at each position. Players like Marcus Dupree, Randy Moss, and Dick Butkus would obviously belong on this list, but I decided to rank the best players from the "internet" era, with 2003 being the earliest player on the list. QB: Kyler Murray, Allen High School, Texas Stats (3 Years, 43 Starts): 10,388 Passing Yards, 117 Passing TDs, 21 INTs, 499 Carries, 4,196 Rushing Yards, 67 TDs 49-0 Record 3 State Championships Kyler Murray is not just they greatest high school quarterback of all time, he is the greatest player regardless of position. With a combination of those ridiculous stats, an absurd 49-0 record with three state championships, and lastly unbelievable highlights in Texas of all places... there is nothing else you could want to see a high school QB do. Murray decided to originally to attend Texas A&M. In his freshman season Murray saw the field very inconsistently where he struggled. He then decided to transfer to Oklahoma where last season he obviously had a ridiculous heisman winning season last year, and will be a first round pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. Honorable Mention: QB: Terrelle Pryor, Jeannette High School, Pennsylvania RB: Derrick Henry, Yulee High School, Florida Stats (4 years, 48 GP): 1,397 Carries, 12,124 Rushing Yards, 153 Touchdowns Similarly to Murray, Derrick Henry's had unrealistic stats combined with an ability to humiliate defenders in high school. Henry obviously put together a ridiculous high school career, and it led into the same in college. In three seasons at Alabama, Henry had a total of 3,876 scrimmage yards to along with 45 total touchdowns, Henry was awarded the 2015 heisman trophy after his junior season. After his junior season Henry was selected with the 45th pick in the 2016 NFL draft. He is coming off his best season of 1,059 yards and 12 touchdowns. Derrick Henry is currently 25 years old and should have a much expanded role next season for the Titans. Honorable Mention: RB: Leonard Fournette, Saint Augustine High School, Louisiana WR: Dorial Green-Beckham, Hillcrest High School, Missouri Stats (3 years, 47 GP): 300 receptions, 6,356 Receiving Yards, 74 Touchdowns Dorial Green-Beckham was clearly in a league of his own. He could take it to the house anytime he touched to ball. His combination of insane speed and size, made him nearly unstoppable. Green-Beckham eventually decided to attend the university of Missouri where he has 1,278 yards and 17 touchdowns in two seasons. He was later picked 40th overall by the Tennessee Titans in the 2013 NFL Draft. He struggled mightily to find a roll in the NFL where he had 941 yards and and 6 touchdowns in a short 2 year career. Dorial is currently unemployed and only 25 years old. Honorable Mentions: WR: Julio Jones, Foley High School, Alabama WR: Percy Harvin, Landstown High School, Virginia OL: La'el Collins, Redemptorist High School, Louisiana Stats: n/a Collins dominated throughout his high school career which led to him being the 8th overall recruit in the class of 2011. After high school, Collins decided to attend Louisiana State University. He dominated, becoming an all-american his senior season. After working out some legal issues Collins was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as a undrafted free agent following the 2015 NFL Draft. The past four seasons Collins has played a big role in the Cowboys o-line. La'el Collins is currently 25 years old and has a lot of football in front of him. Honorable Mention: OL: Kardell Thomas, Southern University Lab School, Louisiana DL: Jadeveon Clowney, South Pointe High School, South Carolina Stats (2 Years, 46 GP): 306 Tackles, 55.5 Sacks Clowney was dominant in high school which led to him being the consensus number one overall prospect in the 2011 draft class. Clowney decided to attend South Carolina where his dominance continued. In three seasons Clowney had 24 sacks and 47 tackles for loss. Clowney then was selected first overall in the 2014 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Clowney started out slow, but he has had 18.5 sacks and 79 total tackles the past two seasons. Jadeveon Clowney is currently 26 years old, and will be a hot commodity on the free agent market this offseason. Honorable Mentions: DL: Myles Garrett, James Martin High School, Texas DL: Rashan Gary, DT, Paramus Catholic, New Jersey DL: Da'Quan Bowers, Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School, South Carolina LB: Manti Te'o, Punahou School, Hawaii Stats: n/a Even though Manti Te'o doesn't have unreal stats that are publicized like the rest of these player, he may have the best highlights. Te'o was the consensus number one overall prospect in the 2009 class. He later decided to attend the university of Notre Dame. In his four seasons with the Irish Te'o had 437 total tackles, while finishing second in the heisman voting in his senior season. Te'o was selected 38th overall in the 2013 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. Manti has been a relatively average player in the NFL being a boarderline starter for the majority of his career. Manti Te'o is currently 28 years old and still on the New Orleans Saints roster. Te'o may go down as the greatest football player from the state of Hawaii. Honorable Mentions: LB: Ernie Simms, North Florida Christian School, Florida LB: Jaylon Smith, Bishop Luers High School, Indiana DB: Ted Ginn Jr, Glenville High School, Ohio Stats: n/a Ted Ginn's high school stats are very tough to find but, he was utilized similar to someone further down this list. After Ginn's historic high school career he was the consensus number one overall player in the class of 2004. After high school Ginn decided to attend Ohio State. At Ohio State Ginn was utilized at a wide receiver instead of a defensive back. In his three seasons for the Buckeyes, Ginn had 2,156 yards from scrimmage to go along with 28 total touchdowns. Ginn was then selected 9th overall in the 2007 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He has been the classic homerun play receiver in the NFL, bouncing around from the Dolphins, 49ers, Panthers, Cardinals, and Saints. Ted Ginn Jr is currently 33 years old and entering his 13th year with the New Orleans Saints. Honorable Mentions: DB: Eric Berry, Creekside High School, Georgia DB: Derwin James, Haines City High School, Florida ATH: Jabrill Peppers, Paramus Catholic, New Jersey Stats (3 Years, 34 GP): OFFENSE: 373 carries, 3,059 rushing yards, 43 rushing touchdowns, 57 receptions, 842 receiving yards, 17 receiving touchdowns DEFENSE: 90 tackles, 2 sacks, 7 INTs Peppers clearly put up unbelievable stats in high school. He was the second ranked player in the class of 2014, and then committed to the university of Michigan. Where in three seasons he had 119 total tackles, 18.5 for loss, 3 sacks, to go along with 1 interception on defense. On offense he had 239 rushing yards to along with 82 receiving and 5 total touchdowns, to go along with one punt return. Jabrill was then selected 25th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns, and has had a successful career in his first two seasons with Browns. Peppers is currently 23 years old and has a lot of football ahead of himself
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BY: Tony LiebertAs a basketball fan, watching the highlights of all the top high school players is something that has been very popular in the internet era. This ranking will obviously not include LeBron James, Michael Jordan, or Kobe Bryant. Every player on this list will be from what I call the "mixtape" era. The oldest player I have on this list is from 2009. I also decided not to include any player that has not yet graduated from high school. I could really make this list a top 50, but I decided to narrow it down to my top 10. Honorable Mentions
10. Mac McClung, G, Gate City High School, Virginia Where is Mac McClung Now? Mac McClung was unranked in the class of 2018 by ESPN, and was ranked 245th by 247sports.com. Mac later decided to commit to the University of Georgetown. He is currently a freshman at Georgetown and this season he has averaged 13.5 points per game and has started every game this season. Mac is currently 19 years old and clearly has a long career in basketball ahead of himself. 9. Brandon Jennings, PG, Oak Hill Academy, California Where is Brandon Jennings Now? Brandon Jennings was the first ranked player in the 2008 class, by ESPN in the inaugural top 100 rankings. Jennings then decided to forgo college and play overseas for Italian club Lottomatica Roma. He left Italy after one season and then entered the NBA Draft, and was selected 10th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. Jennings then bounced around the league while being wildly inconsistent, being the youngest player ever to score 50+ points, getting getting multiple triple doubles, but he struggled to find consistency. Jennings played with the Bucks, Pistons, Magic, Knicks, and then Wizards. Jennings then went back overseas to play for Chinese club Shanxi Brave Dragons where he played very well, averaging 27.8 points per game. He then returned to the NBA playing the Bucks G-League team, the Wisconsin Herd. He eventually made it back the NBA and signed a multi-year contract all the way back to where he started with the Bucks. He was later waived. Brandon Jennings is now 29 years old and most recently played for Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg. Jennings is currently unemployed. 8. Austin Rivers, G, Winter Park High School, Florida Where is Austin Rivers now? Austin Rivers was the third ranked player in the class of 2011 by ESPN. Rivers decided to commit to Duke University. He only played at Duke for one season where he averaged 15.5 points per game, and hit one of the most memorable game winning shots in recent memory against UNC in Chapel Hill. Rivers was later selected 10th overall by the New Orleans Hornets in 2012 NBA Draft. Rivers was incredibly average, eventually being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers where his father Doc Rivers was the head coach and still is. He had his best season in 2017-18 where he averaged 15.1 points per game. Rivers was traded to the Wizards the following season, and then was traded to the Houston Rockets where he is currently playing this season averaging 10.5 points per game and is still only 26 years old. 7. Marcus LoVett Jr, PG, Morgan Park High School, Chicago Where is Marcus LoVett Jr now? Marcus LoVett was unranked by ESPN in the class of 2015 and ranked 97th by 247Sports.com. LoVett had plenty of top offers including, Kansas, UCLA, and Michigan State. LoVett eventually decided to sign with Saint Johns. In his freshman season LoVett average 15.9 points per game and was an unanimous all-freshman Big East team member. In his Sophomore season LoVett was averaging 14.9 points per game until he suffered a season ending knee injury. LoVett then decided to leave Saint Johns and pursue a professional career overseas. Where he is currently playing for Italian club Dinamo Sassari. LoVett Jr is currently 22 years old. 6. Aaron Gordon, F, Archbishop Mitty High School, California Where is Aaron Gordon now? Aaron Gordon was the fourth ranked prospect in the class of 2013 by ESPN. He later decided to commit to the University of Arizona. Gordon was another "one and done" player in college and, in one season for U of A Gordon averaged 12.4 points per game. Gordon was later the fourth pick overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, and was selected by the Orlando Magic. Gordon has been a relatively average NBA starting caliber player in his five year career with the Magic he has averaged 12.2 points and 6.1 rebounds. The highlight of his Gordon's career has been his ridiculous dunk contest against Zach Lavine. Gordon is still only 24 years old and has a long NBA career ahead of him. 5. Aquille Carr, PG, Patterson High School, Maryland Where is Aquille Carr now? Aquille car was not ranked in the ESPN top 100 for the class of 2013, but he was ranked 125th in the country by 247sports.com. Aquille had offers from UConn, Texas, and Seton Hall to name a few. Aquille originally decided to commit to Seton Hall. Going into Carr's senior year he was arrested in his hometown of Baltimore on charges of assaulting the mother of his child. In 2013 Carr was drafted by the Delaware 87ers in the third round of the NBA Development League Draft. He was shortly released, per his request after not receiving much playing time. In 2014, Carr signed with the Saint John Mill Rats of the Canadian National Basketball League, and was later released after averaging 12.9 points in 9 games. In 2016, Carr signed with the Baltimore Hawks of the American Basketball Association, it is not publicized how well Carr played during his time with the Hawks but he left the team after one season. In 2017 Carr signed with Girne Universitesi Sk of the Cypriot North League. It is now said that Carr is playing the 2018-19 season in Mexico. Aquille Carr is still ONLY 25 years old. 4. Seventh Woods, G/F, Hammond School, South Carolina Where is Seventh Woods now? Seventh went incredibly viral after this mixtape from his freshman year. Woods was ranked as the 58th player in the country by ESPN. He then later decided to attend the University of North Carolina. Woods has only averaged 1.9 points in a small role of 8.9 minutes per game in his three years at UNC. Seventh Woods is only 20 years old and I expect him to have a long basketball career ahead of him. 3. Thon Maker, C, Carlisle School, Virginia Where is Thon Maker now? Thon Maker was ranked as the number one player in the country in the class 2016, as a Sophomore by ESPN. Thon had offers from Kansas, Kentucky, and Indiana just to name a few. Thon decided to forgo college and enter the NBA Draft. Although it was discussed how old Thon really is/was, but at the time of the 2016 NBA Draft Thon was said to be 19 and therefore he was allowed to enter the NBA. Thon was then selected 10th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. Thon has struggled to find a role in the NBA only averaging 4.5 points in 13.7 minutes per game in his four seasons. This season Thon was recently traded from the Bucks to the Detroit Pistons, and hopefully Thon is able to find a role with Detroit and turn around his NBA career. Thon Maker is still only 21 years old, and still has immense potential. 2. John Wall, PG, Word of God Christian Academy, North Carolina Where is John Wall? John Wall was the third ranked player in the class of 2009 by ESPN. John chose to attend the University of Kentucky, instead of other schools like Kansas and Duke. John only played one season at Kentucky and averaged at 16.6 points, and 6.5 assist per game, while being awarded SEC player of the year. He was then selected first overall by the Washington Wizards in the 2010 NBA Draft. John has been a boarderline all-star his entire career, where in his best season he averaged 23.1 points and 10.7 assists per game. About a month ago John tore his achilles while returning from heel surgery. Wall is expected to miss at least twelve months, and I expect him to come back stronger than ever. John is currently 28 years old, and hopefully still has good years to play in the NBA. 1. Zion Williamson, F, Spartanburg Day School, South Carolina Where is Zion Williamson is now?
Zion was the second overall ranked player in the class of 2018 by ESPN. Zion chose to attend Duke, instead of other big schools such as Kentucky, Kansas, and UCLA. Zion has 100% lived up to all of the hype that he had he has put together just as good highlights at Duke, compared to high school. He has averaged 21.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, while shooting a ridiculous 66.9 percent from the field. Zion is almost a guarantee to be the number one pick in the NBA's upcoming draft, and has one of the most talked about basketball careers ahead of himself. BY: Tony Liebert10. Vinícius Júnior, Real Madrid (18 Years Old) Vinícius Júnior is a forward for Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid. Early in his soccer career Júnior has had unreal expectations. In 2017, Real Madrid signed a contract to acquire Vinícius, effective after his 18th birthday on 12 July 2018 (as age 18 is the minimum age for international transfer). He transferred for a reported fee of €46 million, which was at the time, the second most expensive sale of a player in the history of Brazilian football (behind only Neymar). From that alone, Vinícius is clearly an unbelievably talented player for the defending Champions League winners, to spend that much money on the transfer of an 18 year old. Vinícius is currently a full time starter for Real Madrid and has 2 goals in 12 total appearances. Although Vinícius has arguably not handled his expectations well, but I expect the uberly talented forward to keep improving for Real Madrid. 9. Kardell Thomas, LSU Tigers, Commit (18 Years Old) Kardell Thomas is a 6'3" 350 pound high school senior. Thomas currently attends Southern University Lab School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Thomas is a consensus four star recruit and the 56th ranked player in the 2019 class by ESPN, he is the second ranked guard in the country. If you watch both of these videos, you will agree with me that those to rankings are down right ridiculous. I don't understand how you watch Kardell play and think there is any other High School lineman you would rather want. Thomas is quite possibly the most physically dominating high school football player, in the "Internet Era." Kardell obviously has serious NFL potential and I am quite excited what the future holds for the big man. 8. Chloe Kim, Snowboarding (18 Years Old) If you payed attention to the last winter olympics, you defiantly saw how dominant Chloe Kim is. At the 2014 winter olympics it was said that Chloe could've been very successful competing at only the age of 14, but 16 is the minimum age to compete. While only being a ridiculous 15 years old at the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix, Chloe became the first woman to land back-to-back 1080 spins in a snowboarding competition. She also scored a perfect 100 points, and is believed to be the second rider ever to do so, after Shaun White. Last year in her first time competing in the Winter Olympics, Chloe took Gold in the Women's Halfpipe finals. Her first was 93.75 points. 8.5 points ahead of second place. Her last score in the Halfpipe was close to a perfect score at, 98.25 points. She was nearly 10 points ahead of the woman who placed 2nd. She was also the youngest woman to ever land two 1080-degree spins in a row at the Olympics. At age 17 she became the youngest woman to ever win gold at the Olympics. Her complete dominance early on in her career should be enough proof that she has the potential to be one of the most dominant ATHLETES not just females, of all time. You can watch her perfect 100 run below. 7. Matthijs de Ligt, Ajax (19 Years Old) Matthijs de Light is a Dutch professional soccer player, who plays defender for Ajax of the Eredivisie league (top league in the Netherlands). De Light quickly quickly shot up the youth ranks in Netherlands and On May 24th 2017, de Ligt became the youngest player ever (17 years and 285 days old) to play in a European Cup Final when he started against Manchester United in the 2017 UEFA Europa League Final. In de Light's next season he became the youngest team captain in Ajax history. Last year de Ligt won the Golden Boy award (best soccer player in the world under the age of 21) and became the first defender to win the award. De Light may just be the best teenage soccer player in the world, and has been a target by all of the biggest clubs in Europe. 6. LaMelo Ball, Spire Institute (17 Years Old) LaMelo has obviously been in an incredible spotlight since he has been 14 years old and he is incredibly well known world wide, with having 4.2 million followers on Instagram. I believe that LaMelo is the most talented out of the three ball brothers, and by a wide margin. In LaMelo's entire life his a been playing against people substantially older than him. When LaMelo was a sophomore in high school he scored 92 points in a single game. I don't care if you think those were all cherry picks, or that he doesn't play any defense. 92 points at any level in any circumstance is down right ridiculous. Since this game LaMelo has obviously played basketball all over the world. I think the helped him mature as a basketball player dramatically. LaMelo is a much better defender and overall basketball player than he was during his time at Chino Hills. LaMelo is currently enrolled at Spire Institute, in Geneva Ohio. He is currently averaging 20.4 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists, against some of the best prep schools in the country. LaMelo is clearly mature beyond his years, overruling his father Lavar and deciding to go back to High School (which was clearly the right decision). So whatever LaMelo's path to the NBA ends up being I think he will be able to block out the noise and have a very successful career. 5. Mikey Williams, Basketball (14 Years Old) Mikey Williams is a 14 year old basketball player, who is the consensus number one overall player in the 2023 class. Williams has unbelievable athleticism and he is able to dunk with tremendous ease. Mikey bursted on to the scene when he was on Bronny James' (LeBron's son obviously) AAU team the North Coast Blue Chips. 14 years old is obviously very early to start scouting any athlete of any age, but you can tell Mikey is special. He is currently said 6'2" and many people expect him to keep growing, so height is not a problem. Already having a relationship with one of the best teenage athletes ever LeBron James, which will clearly help Mikey handle the insane expectations. Mikey Williams clearly has a gift to play the game of basketball, and I am incredibly intrigued to see what his future holds. He has put together a highlight tape at 14 arguably better than anyone else ever has. 4. Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Toronto Blue Jays (19 Years Old) Vladimir Guerrero Jr is the arguably best prospect in all of baseball since Mike Trout, or Bryce Harper. Guerrero Jr's father is obviously a future hall of famer, and I think Vlad junior might be better. Last season in a combination of levels in the minor leagues he batted .381, hit 20 homers, and 78 RBIs in only 95 games. Vladimir has not played a game yet for the Blue Jays, but this season I expect him to take the MLB by storm and put everyone on notice how good he is. Vlad is one of the best pure hitting prospects in years. He is all you want in an elite level power hitter, he obviously is extremely gifted, and has a picture perfect swing. The Blue Jays are still taking their time with Guerrero and he may not be on Toronto's opening day roster. I understand that the Blue Jays want to protect their precious talent, but Guerrero needs to be in the Major Leagues. Whenever Guerrero gets called up to the MLB, I expect him to be one of the best hitters in baseball, and he will take the league by storm. 3. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks (19 Years Old) Unlike the next man on this list Luka isn't an all world athlete, but may be the best teenage basketball player of all time. Like I said in my recent article about Luka here. He is easily one of the most decorated teenage athletes of all time. In his teenage years he was playing in the second best basketball career in the world, against grown men. Compared to how players like LeBron James played against children in high school. Luka achieved everything possible in the Euro League and in his short career in the NBA he has done nothing short of that. So far this season Luka has been averaging 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 5.6 assists. With those numbers he practically has the rookie of the year award already won. Luka is arguably one of the greatest European teenage athletes of all time regardless of sport, and he has proven to be as dominant if not more in America. 2. Zion Williamson, Duke Blue Devils (18 Years Old) You could put the top three athletes in any order, and have a good argument for any of them. Zion might be the most athletic 6'7" 280 pound human being of all time, and I don't think that is an exaggeration. It has been said that Zion has a 45" vertical... 45. Williamson also produced the greatest high school basketball highlights of the internet era if anyone argues that... they should never watch sports again. That is just ridiculous a human being should not be able to do that at that size. Zion came into Duke, possibly being the most hyped high school prospect of all time. This season I think lived up to all the hype and then some. Zion is averaging 22 points a game, and 9.3 rebounds, while shooting 68 percent from the field. That puts him 18th in the country in scoring while being 10th in field goal percentage. Those are just ridiculous stats for any Freshman, I don't care if you're a man child. Zion has feats of athleticism while playing basketball, that make me legitimately believe that he should be in the argument for the GREATEST ATHLETE OF ALL TIME. Yes at 18 years old I think Zion has the potential to be the greatest athlete of all time. Zion is just down right a super human. 1. Trevor Lawrence, Clemson Tigers (19 Years Old) Trevor Lawrence will be a top five quarterback when his career is over (which you can read more about here). So far in his very short football career, he broke Deshaun Watson's Georgia state passing yards record in high school. While going 51-4 and winning two Georgia state championships in his career. Lawrence then went on to be the number one prospect in the entire country, then he committed to Clemson. At Clemson Lawrence earned the starting job from Kelly Bryant, a very good quarterback who led Clemson to the College Football Playoff the season before. Then after Lawrence took over the starting job, he just made College Football look like Pop Warner. He just effortlessly led Clemson to an undefeated season and a win against an Alabama team that was considered by many as the "greatest college football team of all time." In his freshman season Lawrence made unreal throw after unreal throw look so easy. He is easily one of the most talented quarterbacks of all time. In Lawrence's young career he has just dominated at every level, while not really even looking like he's putting in effort. Lawrence has been one of the greatest teenage quarterbacks of all time. Quarterback is the hardest position to play in all of sports, so that is why Trevor Lawrence is the greatest teenage athlete in the world. BY: Tony LiebertWhat is the AAF? AAF stands for the Alliance of American of Football. If you don't want to sound like you're talking about an assurance company, just call it "The Alliance." The AAF was designed to be an alternative path for getting back to the NFL. Instead of playing in Arena football of in the CFL in Canada players are now able to play in America during their path back to the NFL. The only rule differences are...
The Alliance has 8 teams, The San Antonio Commanders, San Diego Fleet, Orlando Apollos, Atlanta Legends, Birmingham Iron, Memphis Express, Arizona Hotshots, and the Salt Lake Stallions. They are going to have a 10 week regular season, capping off with a four team playoff, leading up to the AAF championship on April 27th. This weekend was the Alliance's opening week. Recapping Week 1 The league kicked off Saturday night with two games. San Antonio Commanders V.S. San Diego Fleet The Commanders are coached by former Nebraska head coach Mike Riley. San Antonio is led by QB Logan Woodside. His name may sound familiar he had a very successful career at Toledo, and was drafted in the 7th round of last years NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, and he obviously struggled to find a spot on the team. Woodside played terrific this week and showed that he can be one of the stars of the Alliance. The Fleet are headlined by quarterback Mike Bercovici, who had his own successful career at Arizona State. San Diego looked quite over matched in this game, struggling to move the ball. This biggest moment of this game was when Bercovici got completely mauled with his helmet popping off and no penalty being called. I am obviously all for no targeting penalties. This was arguably the most talked about moment of the weekend. Commanders: 16 Fleet: 5 Orlando Apollos V.S. Atlanta Legends I was not able to watch this game, there was only one game on CBS depending on your market area. My biggest complaint so far is, that there is no way for me to see the score of the game, or the stats, which is just ridiculous not to have in today "technology era." I do know that the Apollos are coached by former South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier. And they have former NFL quarterback Garrett Gilbert. The Atlanta Legends originally had Michael Vick as their offensive coordinator, but he left the team for unknown reasons. The Legends are led by former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray who actually lost the starting QB job to Matt Simms. They also have former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson, who is now playing running back. And lastly they have the Instagram kicking legend Younghoe Koo. The highlight of this game was Steve Spurrier's "Orlando Special" call. That led to complete dominance. Apollos: 40 Legends: 6 Younghoe Koo hitting an insane trick shot. The weekend was caped of with one afternoon game and one night game on Sunday. Birmingham Iron V.S. Memphis Express The Birmingham Iron are led by "all time bust" Trent Richardson. Richardson had himself a classic Richardson performance with 23 carries for 60 yards and two touchdowns. The Memphis Express are led by fellow bust Christian Hackenberg, I don't have Hackenberg's stats but I watched the game and he still looked terrible. I don't think he even had over 100 yards passing. The Iron's defense dominated this game and look like they could be the best team in the league. I would say the highlight of this game was just the reassurance that Trent Richardson and Christian Hackenberg still aren't NFL level talent, but I am still rooting for them. The Iron are my favorite, to take home the championship. Iron: 26 Express: 0 Arizona Hotshots V.S. Salt Lake Stallions The Hotshots have a very well known coaching staff with formal NFL head coach Rick Neuheisel, and former Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze, who will bring some much needed controversy to the Alliance. I mean what a football league without a head coach that made 12 calls to an escort service, and calls himself an incredibly christian man. The Stallions are led by Minnesota Viking "all time great" Matt Asiata and they are coached by former NFL head coach Dennis Erickson. This game was relatively uneventful, but the Hotshots are clearly one of the better teams in the league led by quarterback John Wollford who had a solid performance. Hotshots: 38 Stallions: 22 Is their success obtainable? The Alliance's opening week was clearly a success. They had a higher overnight rating in their Saturday Night games than the NBA's "Saturday Night Primetime" matchup between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets. They was also a lot of good publicity going out on Twitter all weekend. I think this league clearly has the possibility to be successful. I think right away the football consumers are enjoying this league so much, because it's right after the NFL season, so they just want football season to keep going. With the current design I don't think it will be successful in the long run. Their biggest strength is their NFL level coaching, which is the hardest part. All of the alternative football leagues have struggled to get big name coaches in the past. At the end of the day people watch for the players, they need to have more stars, when your biggest name is Trent Richardson, I don't think you're going to very popular in the long run. What is the league's future? If you have top level stars to promote, it obviously will draw more fans to your league. I think you can have "Star" level players in the AAF if underclass college football players being leaving college and joining the Alliance. Similar to Herschel Walker, did with leaving Georgia for USFL after his Sophomore season. I think this would be possible for a number of college prospects that are clearly superior to their talent in the NCAA. If the Alliance is able to form into a developmental league, or an alternative path to get to the NFL out of college. I think it could be very successful. I think this is the leagues long term goal. Bill Polian (the leagues president) has stated that they don't want to take over the NFL, they want their players to get back there. If this is true I see this league being very successful. At the end of the day people are always going to watch football if it's there, especially if it's good football. Obvious Changes
If they just make some obvious changes online, and on social media, they have the ability to be much more successful as a league. All of theses changes are quite obvious and very simple to change. It almost makes me think, do they realize that people like to use the internet in 2019? What I do like
Overall I really like the changes that the Alliance has made and I think they has a great base to grow their league off of. With just some obvious changes, I think they can be a successful alternative football league to the NFL.
By: Tony LiebertIf you were not aware the New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks made a trade last week, centered around 23 year old Latvian superstar Kristaps Porzingis. FULL TRADE DETAILS: New York Knicks Receive: Dennis Smith Jr, DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews, two future first round picks. Dallas Mavericks Receive: Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr, Trey Burke, Courtney Lee. Knicks side of the trade: In the public eye, the majority of sports media was confused by this trade for the New York Knicks. I thought otherwise. This was a trade that needed to be done for New York. The star 7-footer Porzingis was clearly upset with the front office and the direction of the franchise. The main argument to the trade being bad for the Knicks, is that "Why would a franchise that had struggled too much to find their star, why would they trade the closest thing they've had to that?" I am a huge Porzingis fan, but it was time for the Knicks to move on. You could clearly tell that their current core was not prepared to contend for a title and they needed more pieces. And for your main star for of your young core to not be on board with the franchise, is enough evidence for me to think it was time for Porzingis to move on. The Knicks received a great compensation for the Latvian star, Porzingis. Kristaps is coming off of a torn ACL, so he clearly did not have as much value on the trade market as he would if he were healthy. Kristaps also is a restricted free agent this summer, therefore if he was still on the team he would have most likely been receiving a pretty big contract from the Knicks so it was time to move on. Starting with Dennis Smith Jr, DSJ is an incredible explosive young point guard, who defiantly has the potential to develop into a fringe all-star level point guard and an above average starting PG in the NBA. It also ironic the Knicks ended up with DSJ after being criticized for taking Frank Ntilikina instead of Smith in the 2017 NBA draft. Smith Jr will most likely be the only player still in New York after this season from this trade. Even though the Knicks only get DeAndre Jordan for the rest of this season, they get an elite level rebounder with great shot blocking ability. While also being great at finishing around the rim. The Knicks could still flip Jordan at the deadline or re-sign him during free agency this summer. The last player the Knicks received was sharp shooting two guard Wesley Matthews, who is a great three point shooter, and can be a strong rotation player on a championship team. Similar to Jordan, Matthews has one year left on his contract and could be flipped for something else at the deadline, or sign a more team friendly contract in the offseason. Lastly the Knick received two future first round picks that most likely will be in the back end of the draft most likely in the late 20s. I think these picks are still valuable, and you can receive great rotation players or a diamond in the rough. You can also package these picks in another deal for something more valuable. The main reason this trade was so good for the Knicks, was because of the salary cap relief they received. The Knicks got rid of Courtney Lee who has this season and one more, where he will be making 12+ million dollars. They also traded away Tim Hardaway Jr who has three more seasons where he will be making 17-18 million dollars. Trey Burke is on a relatively salary friendly contract so he is not relavent. The Knicks also took on two expiring deals in Jordan and Matthews, which will be expiring this summer. This means this upcoming offseason the Knicks could potentially have 74.6 million dollars in cap space. This frees up to max deal spots for the Knicks in a loaded free agent class that currently contains, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, Jimmy Butler, Kemba Walker, and DeMarcus Cousins just to name a few. If the Knicks are able to sign even one of these stars while having a projected top five pick in the upcoming NBA draft, they have the "CHANCE" to roll out a starting lineup of, Kyrie Irving, Dennis Smith Jr, Kevin Knox, Kevin Durant, and Zion Williamson. This is obviously a big "CHANCE" but even having this possibility makes trading Porzingawd very worth it. Mavericks side of the trade: I also really like this trade for the Dallas Mavericks. You can clearly tell that the combo of Dennis Smith Jr, and Doncic was working but kind of holding back Luka. So the Maverick has to acquire a star to pair with Doncic. In my recent article where you can read by clicking on this link (Luka Article) I wrote about why I think Luka Doncic has the potential to be an NBA great. I also think Porzingis has that same potential and I think he has shown that in his young NBA career. Tim Hardaway Jr, Courtney Lee, and Trey Burke all are solid role players for a championship team. But I expect the Mavericks to get off of Hardaway Jr, and Lee's unfriendly contracts. Porzingis was clearly the center piece of this trade and the Mavericks are going all in to a Porzingis, Doncic future. What better situation could arguably the two best young European prospects be in. They have the ability to both be the leaders of their team, while being mentored by the greatest European basketball player of all time Dirk Nowitzki. I think this was the move the Mavericks had to make and they will show Mark Cuban to never make the same mistake he did with Nash and Nowitzki. And with more pieces I think the Mavericks will be able to compete for a title with this young core of Porzingis and Doncic. BY: Tony LiebertOverall this year's Super Bowl commercials were relatively weak, but I still think the top five was strong as ever. I will give you the two that I think just missed the cut and then my five best commercials ranked. Pringles This was a chuckle level commercial. It really just warranted a small laugh, but it still marketed the product very well and gave a funny joke. Bubly I really am not familiar with Bubly as a brand but this was a great commercial. Great use of a celebrity endorsement, poking fun at Michael Bublé's name, something I think any normal person has done. Overall subtle and funny commercial 5. Hyundai Hyundai did a great job marketing their product while still being funny. All of the jokes they made were relatable and funny. Solid commercial but not anything special. 4. Pepsi I think that is really a four man race for best commercial. I thought Pepsi did a great job with this one. While being a billion dollar company every restaurant still asks, "Is Pepsi okay?" I thought they did a great job using a very relatable punch line, while making their product enticing with celebrity endorsers something we all catch falling for, no matter what the product is. 3. Olay I really don't care that the commercial was for Olay. I just thought this was laugh out loud funny. And it got me talking about their company, so it did its job. 2. Amazon Easily the funniest commercial of the night. Amazon did not disappoint, this was hilarious. 1. NFL Top 100 This is obviously a bias ranking coming from a huge NFL fan. But this commercial was super relatable while still being funny. And there was just tidbit after tidbit that made you as an NFL fan, go "Oh I understand that" in your head. Overall all time commercial, at the end of the day it is a football game.
BY: Tony LiebertThe Patriots defense played a great game and it really couldn't have been much better, but it is not the reason they won Super Bowl 53... WHY THEIR DEFENSIVE PERFORMANCE IS OVERRATED A) Stephon Gilmore's interception You may think Gilmore's great defensive play was the reason the Patriots won. Don't get me wrong Gilmore did what needed to be done and made a great interception. While locking down whoever he was guarding all night. BUT... Jared Goff was clearly flustered and the moment was too big for him. Blitzes that Goff has been able to pick up all season, looked almost foreign to him. Specifically on Gilmore's interception, Goff's interception was on a throw that any competent NFL corner could have intercepted and clearly was thrown right up to him. On that drive the Rams had all of the momentum and were beginning to make the Patriots defense look shaky and getting no points really shifted the momentum to the Patriots. JARED GOFF gifted the Patriots that interception, and the Patriots defense clearly did not force it. B) Jared Goff's inability to get rid of the ball All night you could clearly tell that the Goff struggled to get the ball out of his hand, before the Patriots D-Line got to him. It almost looked like at times that he sacked himself, or made ilavised/ rushed throws. You may think to yourself, yeah this is because the Patriots flustered him with their exotic blitzes and sneaky coverages... WRONG Goff clearly had plays all night where he was missing a wide open receiver while having his eyes locked on a man that is clearly covered and then, he either forces it or runs out of time. C) Run Game Predictability All night you could clearly tell that Sean McVay did not have the same creative running game that made the Rams offense so great all season. The Rams offense built on running the ball and then going to play action. Without a running game Jared Goff has not yet shown the ability to drop back and pick apart a defense. The Rams did not run a single jet sweep all night which was one of the reasons that made their offense so tough to cover. They were throwing different types of runs at the defense all game in the regular season which kept the defense on their toes. In this game you could clearly tell that the Rams offense was really just running power right and power left, as an NFL defense especially the Patriots I would hope you could catch on and slow that down. I felt like I was almost Tony Romo watching this game you could tell when and where they were running the ball the whole game. The one play that the Rams decide to switch it up they ran a counter to the inside and Gurley broke a 16 yarder. The Patriots defense really was just able to stop the Rams INCREDIBLY PREDICTABLE run plays and put the ball into the hands of an inexperienced QB that has clearly not shown the ability the drop back and pick apart the defense. WHY OFFENSIVE LINE PLAY WON THE GAME Without Trent Brown, Joe Thuney, David Andrews, Shaq Mason, and Marcus Cannon's dominant performance, the New England Patriots don't win Super Bowl 53. I said everyone of their names because they deserve recognition and credit. You may argue that Tom Brady did have much time to throw the ball all night, but he had enough. For an offensive line to relatively contain the back to back defensive player in the year in Aaron Donald, and shut down the rest of the so called "best" defensive front in the NFL is nothing short of remarkable. The Patriots O-Line closed out the Super Bowl with dominance.
When the rest of their team needed them most the line showed up to play. In the biggest drive of the game the O-Line willed the Patriots to first down after first down, running the ball all over the so called "best" defensive front in football. They were dominating the Rams with trap block after trap block (a play Sean McVay needs to learn to call) they were finishing their blocks into the dirt and showing that they are going to be the reason they win this game. Without the O-Line's dominance late in the fourth quarter, and the ability to RELATIVELY slow down Aaron Donald they would not be Super Bowl 53 champs. |
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May 2020
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