Sports Archives - Page 221 of 224

NFL Network Goes “Inside Training Camp”

July 24, 2007 Ryan Berenz

NFL Network is visiting six NFL training camps in five days beginning July 30 for a series aptly called Inside Training Camp (full schedule after the jump). NFL Network is putting wireless mics on players and coaches to give viewers an on-the-field perspective of drills and practices. There’ll also be news, storylines, injury reports and updates on positional battles throughout each show. The first preseason game, the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, between New Orleans and Pittsburgh, will air on NFL Network Aug. 5 — a bold scheduling move for the NFL, since this game usually aired in […]

“ESPN First Take” Features Matt Groening On Thursday, Will Resume Crappiness On Friday

July 16, 2007 Ryan Berenz

Perhaps in conjunction with some kind of movie coming out sometime in the near future, The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and executive producer Al Jean will appear Thursday morning on ESPN First Take on ESPN2. Then on Friday, First Take subjects you to this: Friday, July 20 “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” – Adam Sandler & Kevin James If anyone sees that movie, I guarantee it’s not for Adam Sandler and Kevin James. (On Wednesday, Donnie Wahlberg is going to be on ESPN First Take talking about Boston sports.) Photo is from the Kwik-E-Mart in Chicago, where dorks […]

Big Ten Network May Be Overestimating Its Value A Bit

July 13, 2007 Ryan Berenz

The latest fussin’ and feudin’ between cable companies and upstart TV sports networks is brought to you by Big Ten Network, a joint venture between FOX Cable Networks and the Big Ten Conference. The network is devoted to sports, academics, activities and personalities (but yeah, mostly sports) from the Big Ten’s 11 institutions. It plans to launch Aug. 30 with a schedule that is going to include more than 35 football games, more than 105 men’s basketball games, women’s sports and coaches shows. Big Ten Network has found carriage on DirecTV and a number of small cable companies, but doesn’t […]

Kige Ramsey Agrees With This

July 13, 2007 Ryan Berenz

Thanks to Deadspin for introducing me to Kige Ramsey of “YouTube Sports,” a college student who has been vlogging prolifically with insightful commentary on topical sports issues. Some of us here are addicted to his YouTubes. If one of the major multimedia sports entities does not hire this kid immediately, I don’t want to hear any more B.S. about how “cutting edge” they are. I recommend the entire Kige Ramsey collection.

ESPNEWS Road Trip: 30 Cities. Six Weeks.

July 9, 2007 Ryan Berenz

ESPNEWS tonight starts City by City, a six week series with daily profiles of America’s 30 leading sports cities. The segments will air during The Hotlist, Pregame and Gametime shows. The cities were selected by the ESPNEWS editorial team. We’ll let Barry Sacks, senior coordinating producer, ESPN Studio Production, explain it to you in his best press-release lingo: City by City will take fans down memory lane to relive some of the biggest moments in each city’s sports history. Whether it is the Red Sox reversing the curse, Texas’ thrilling comeback in the Rose Bowl over USC or Peyton Manning […]

Joakim Noah: The People’s Princess

June 29, 2007 Ryan Berenz

You know, if ESPN’s NBA Draft coverage was more like this brilliant YouTube, maybe we’d have more interest in it. I interviewed Stephen A. Smith two years ago when Quite Frankly was a promising new enterprise. It was one morning during the NBA Finals, and I think he was half asleep … yet everything he said was important!

“Shaq’s Big Challenge” Premiere Live Blog!

June 26, 2007 Ryan Berenz

Who’s ready for some “exploitive and cruel” fun? The Shaq’s Big Challenge premiere party live blog is going to start tonight at 9pm ET. After the jump, we’ll introduce you to the six kids Shaq is going to whip into shape, and give you some pretty interesting recipe ideas — “pizza burritos,” anyone? Then grab a 2-liter bottle of RC Cola, a garbage bag full of Funyuns, a bucket of KFC, one of those Burger King Quad Stackers and join in the live blog action! Tune in to ABC, refresh the site often, post your comments (keep them clean, it’s […]

You’re Invited To The “Shaq’s Big Challenge” Premiere Party!

June 22, 2007 Ryan Berenz

Among the detritus of summer throwaway reality series season is a true gem of a show: Shaq’s Big Challenge premiering June 26 at 9pm ET on ABC. If you saw the May issue of Channel Guide Magazine, you know of our love of all things Shaquille O’Neal — especially any of his endeavors off the basketball court. In Shaq’s Big Challenge, the Miami Heat big man will help transform six obese, sedentary middle-school students in Florida into healthy, active youngsters. (ESPN’s Page 2 has an interview with Shaq about the show.) So it would be a great disservice to civilization […]

Brew Crew Is Young And Restless

June 20, 2007 Jeff Pfeiffer

* I always knew sports was filled with drama — but daytime drama? Today a few members of the Milwaukee Brewers — J.J. Hardy, Chris Capuano, Bill Hall and Jeff Suppan — are making cameos on CBS’ The Young and the Restless. Since the show is set in Wisconsin, the teammates show up in support of regular character Jack Abbott’s (Peter Bergman) run for state senate. Both Hardy and Capuano have since had injuries, so hopefully the bad acting and multiple takes of simple lines didn’t tax them too much. The Brew Crew’s appearance follows on the heels of last […]

The 4th OT: Into The “Ruff” Stuff

June 8, 2007 Ryan Berenz

Hopefully you saw the review of the movie Ruffian in the June issue of Channel Guide Magazine. The ESPN Original Entertainment movie premieres Sunday on ABC/ABC HD and stars Sam Shepard and Frank Whaley. It’s based on the true story of Ruffian, considered to be the best thoroughbred filly of all time. It’s a good effort, and while I’m not a fan of the whole horse movie genre (I prefer the monkey genre), Ruffian kept my interest even though I knew it would have a Barbaro-type ending. The 4th OT will be on vacation next week, as I’m cutting a […]