8:00 PMDarren Everson of the Wall Street Journal cracks the code of Jim Harbaugh's signing day tweets - turns out the Stanford coach was giving a shout-out to the players' area codes.
Earlier today OAKLAND TRIBUNE columnist Cam Inman reported that JaMarcus Russell blew off his season-ending meeting with the Raiders to go party at The Palms in Vegas.
When I heard the news, I immediately thought back to these wonderful photos of a soft-centered Russell showing an uncanny dedication to a rigorous offseason routine.
But Lubbock radio and TV personality Chris Levelreports this afternoon that, “Tech is going to talk to Tuberville next and after talking to Tommy earlier he’s more than ready for the phone call when it comes.”
Level is also the proprietor of RedRaiderSports.com.
Dwain Price of the FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM reports that earlier today Ruffin McNeill had an informal visit with the same folks who jettisoned Michael Leach from the school:
Interim Texas Tech football coach Ruffin McNeill had an informal interview Monday morning with school president Guy Bailey and chancellor Kent Hance.
Pete Christy of KCBD-TV in Lubbock also reports that McNeill talked to the Tech admin, and that chat included Athletic Director Gerald Myers.
So besides Tuberville and McNeill, who else is in the mix, and who isn’t?
On Aaron Weinsten, who once worked for the pay-for-sex mogul:
Weinstein’s plea follows the conviction of Ralph Hawkins, a sheriff’s deputy who admitted taking $3200 and Oakland Raiders tickets from Weinstein in return for smuggling unauthorized food items (like sushi and barbecued chicken) to Francis.
So dude wanted Raiders tix to provide comfort to a porn guy in prison? Next thing will be a story about dude wanting porn to comfort Raiders fan in prison. Or dude wanting prison to comfort Raider fan who does porn. Or … okay I’ll stop.
(”THANK YOU JESUS BUT I KIND OF HAD BIGGER ASPIRATIONS SO LET’S TALK ABOUT THOSE LATER TODAY OKAY THANKS AGAIN BYE BYE”)
Johnson’s probably going to need God again, and he’s going to need Him for a serious, universe-altering favor. Parting the Red Sea? Feh. Planting dinosaur bones to make atheists think the Earth is old? Child’s play. Creating the universe and everything in it? Ho-hum. God’s got much bigger problems to work out now: like making the Raiders run the table and make the playoffs this season.
And now, more punchy fun involving the Oakland Raiders, this time without Tom Cable. You may remember Jeremy Brigham (below) as a tight end for the Raiders from 1998-2001 (if so you have a good memory — he scored three career touchdowns). He now lives in the peaceful, leafy Northern California enclave of Pleasanton, where he coaches a youth football team of 9- and 10-year-olds.
Today, however, Brigham is under investigation by Pleasanton police for allegedly beating up his assistant coach, who is now in a neck brace. Brigham supposedly attacked the coach because he thought he had leaked the team’s plays to another team after he had fired him. Then it gets weird. Read more…
Sunday in San Diego, the Chargers beat the Raiders for the 13th straight time, a bitter pill for the legions of SoCal Raider fans who made the annual journey south from (East) Los Angeles.
(NFL apparently is like Vegas to J-Russ and Cable: A game of “chance”)
With the lossthe Raiders dropped to 2-6, their playoff hopes out the window.
But despite Sunday’s result and the season’s circumstances, JaMarcus Russell wasn’t displeased with himself after the Charger loss. Nor was his coach. Read more…