Craw’s Sports Biz 59 Seconds

By Gregory Crawford @wchoops

Since 2009 Nike has been the outfitter of at least 2 or more teams in the men’s Final Four. That continued this year with Nike’s relationship with Michigan State and Virginia. For first time ever Under Armour will have the other two teams, Texas Tech and Auburn. Nice job Nike and Under Armour.

This Week On PGA Tour

By Gregory Crawford @wchoops

Valero Texas Open

Par 72, 7,435 Yards

Prize Money, $7.5 million

Craw’s projected winner—- Andrew Putnam

Ex- OSU pitcher Matt Boyd Strikes Out More Than Batters

by Harry Cummins

     Detroit pitcher Matt Boyd struck out a career-high 13 New York Yankees in just 6 1/3 innings Wednesday afternoon to become the first ever Detroit Tigers hurler to open a baseball season with 10 or more strikeouts in back to back games.

      Boyd left the game in a 1-1 tie and the Tigers went on to post a 2-1 victory, as the Yankees struck out 18 times during the afternoon, setting a storied franchise record for futility.

     Boyd may be remembered as an All-American pitcher for the Oregon State Beavers and made his major league debut in 2015 with the Toronto Blue Jays.  He opened the season for Detroit last week by fanning 10 batters and walking only 1 over 5 innings in a loosing effort against his former team, the Blue Jays. He now has amassed a MLB leading 23 K's in just 11 1/3 innings this season.

     Boyd and his wife Ashley have also made headlines this month with the news that they have essentially adopted 36 girls in Uganda, seeking to protect them from the growing sex slave industry.

    The couple has bought the girls food and clothing and rent for their home and are planning to raise money to purchase more land in Uganda to build four new homes, so they can rescue still more girls from what has become a pressing global issue. 

 

     To this end, they have created their own non-profit, Kingdom Home.  They also plan to start a vocational training program that will will pay for each child to attend a university and prepare them for life.

     Boyd was spotted last month in his uniform and cleats, walking the concourse of the Tigers spring training home in Lakeland, Florida, talking to fans about his cause.  A May 20 fund raiser is planned  in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

     An estimated 3.6 million adults and 1 million children were victims of forced sexual exploitation in 2016, according to a study from the the United Nations International Labor Organization.

    Matthew Boyd, clearly, is striking out far more than just major league hitters these days!  Attempting to eradicate injustice a world away, the loaded lineups of the American League are far less imposing

Goodbye, Alliance of American Football.

By Steven Weldon



A moment of silence for another minor football league. The Alliance of American Football has folded after eight games. The league and its' teams have ceased operations as of April 2nd, leaving eight teams worth of players, coaches, AAF executives, and employees out of a job.

While most leagues fail due to lack of income, exposure or talent, it seemed the AAF had all of this. At first glance, the television exposure made it look like the league was ready for its' close up. Six million people tuned in to the first weekend of action.

And yet still, before the second week of games began, the league was in trouble of running out of cash and missing payroll. While it was disputed by league founder Charlie Ebersol, an investor arrived at the doorstep of the league. Tom Dundon, the owner of the Carolina Hurricanes NHL franchise, stepped up and invested $250 million into the league to get things moving.

This made Dundon the league's effective owner and chairman, as he had put down enough money to have the biggest stake in it.

As the weeks went on, we saw the Orlando Apollos dominate the league, Jerry Jones show up at the NFL combine wearing an AAF shirt, a former high NFL draft pick in Johnny Manziel signing with the Memphis Express, and the San Antonio Commanders becoming the league's top draw - with one week the team amassing over 30,000 in attendance.

Just as Eminem expressed interest in bringing a franchise to his home city of Detroit, Mich., AAF Chairman Tom Dundon announced that without the support of the NFL Players Association, the league would fold by the end of the week. The goal, in short, was to become a minor league for the NFL. Players being able to jump down to the AAF and back up to the NFL and development was the key piece to keeping the AAF afloat; just as in the past, the ABA wanted to merge with the NBA, and the AFL merging with the NFL. We'd seen this script time and time again, and sadly, it was only a matter of time.

Under Dundon's control, the league could not strike a deal with the NFLPA, and the majority owner packed up his investment money. The AAF folded, with no money behind it, and against the founders' wishes.

At face value, it all makes sense why an investor would pull out. If you're not making money, why invest? The problem with sports ventures is that they take a very long time to actually make money. Athletes, coaches, game staff, venue staff, the entire venue, it all costs a large chunk of money.

But was the end all about the AAF? Sources close to AAF officials on Twitter have reported Dundon was interested in a gambling app being developed aside from the AAF's official league app. It's all speculation now, but we are left to ruminate in the idea that Dundon really didn't care about the AAF in the first place.

Sadly, now players have been kicked out of rooms that had not been paid for, left to fend for themselves on tickets to get home from the cities they poured their talent out for. Multiple people working on the image of the AAF and football operations are also left to figure out the next steps as well.

Finally, the least important of all of them, I don't get to bring you the most exciting late winter-early spring football league I've seen in years. It has been a pleasure watching these players and announcers bring us football with some rules that should definitely be put in place in the NFL. We'll see about the carry-over from here.

Where do we go from here? Well, the XFL is coming in 2020. That league definitely has money behind it, and now they'll have talent and coaches to draw from.

Goodbye, Alliance of American Football. You were fun while you lasted.

P.S. GO ARIZONA HOTSHOTS!!!

Thank You Mr. Weldon

We at Craw’s Corner are thrilled and fortunate to have Steven Weldon as a top notch contributor. Over the past few weeks Steven has contributed mightily in covering the Alliance of American Football which folded today.

Steven we feel bad for you, but not all is lost as he will continue to cover soccer and the NFL for us. A big round of applause for Mr. Weldon.

Craw’s Corner Sports Biz 59 Seconds

By Gregory Crawford @wchoops

2019 Payroll,

New York Yankees $200 million 

Baltimore Orioles $70 million

Biggest gap between teams of any division in MLB.

In A Game As Good As It Gets, Ducks Reach Final Four Pinnacle

by Harry Cummins


     It's Sabrina Ionescu's world and for one electric Sunday afternoon at Portland's Moda Center I was simply pleased to be a small part of it.

     In what was one of the most intriguing and well constructed basketball games I have ever been privy to witness, Ionescu and her Oregon Ducks held off  Teaira McCowan and the Mississippi State Bulldogs 88-84 in the Portland Regional final to advance to their first ever Final Four appearance.  Also, for the first time in three years, the preeminent powerhouse Bulldogs will not be playing in the NCAA Championship game.

     This game belonged in a time capsule.  Ionescu, who along with McCowan, is a leading candidate for the National Player of the Year award, scored 31 points, 14 in the final quarter including all five of her final shots from the field.  It was the most points ever tallied by a Lady Duck in an NCAA tournament game.  Her step-back 3 point dagger with 1:13 left in the game could turn out to be the most important shot of the season, supplying the Ducks (33-4) with a 6 point lead in the closing moments.

      Ionescu, college basketball's all-time career' triple double' leader in both women's and men's NCAA D-1 history with 18, came close to her signature feat once again Sunday, pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out 8 assists. Still a junior and just named an AP All-American for the second time, Ionescu must now decide whether to declare for the upcoming WNBA draft or return to Oregon for her senior season.

     There was far more to this back-and-forth instant classic:

     The two teams had only 14 combined turnovers, just 6 by the Bulldogs.  There were 11 ties, and 15 lead changes, 7 in the first quarter alone.  No team ever enjoyed more than a 7 point lead.  The teams combined to hit 21 of 39 3 point attempts, with the Ducks connecting on a sizzling 13 of 26 baskets from long distance.  Oregon finished the game shooting 54.2% from the field, 50% from 3 point range. They hit 10 of their 14 shots in the 4th and final quarter, including 5 of 7  3's.

     All five Mississippi State starters scored in double figures.  Their 6'7"All-American McCowan had 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots despite being double and triple teamed the entire contest. Senior guard Jazzmun Holmes handed out 13 assists to go with her 15 points in posting a double-double performance.  The Bulldogs (33-3 )pressure-packed play in front of a hostile Moda Center filled with nearly 12,000 yellow and green clad Oregon supporters, was indeed impressive.

     The Ducks,with their rapidly rotating ball movement all afternoon, proved instrumental in creating the spacing needed for their open 3 point looks.  Oregon also out rebounded the Bulldogs, who came into this game ranked 2nd nationally in rebound margin per game.

    Satou Sabally, Oregon's athletic 6'4" sophomore from Berlin, Germany, was outstanding, scoring 22 points, to go with 7 rebounds,3 assists and 3 blocked shots.  Ducks forward Ruthy Hebard led a swarming defense responsible for containing McCowan around the basket.  Hebard also broke loose in the 3rd quarter to score 10 of her 14 points in the game, and had a key blocked shot of a McCowan attempt late in the final quarter that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

     The Ducks await the winner of a Monday night clash between top ranked Baylor and Iowa to determine their opponent in Tampa, Florida next weekend in the Final Four.

    Despite the near flawless performance yesterday by the Ducks, I do have concerns they will not be able to repeat their 50% accuracy from 3 point distance in what will amount to a win or go home contest played on a neutral (Tampa) court.  Of more importance, I doubt  Oregon can count on a repeat of yesterday's "generous" officiating under the basket, where they were allowed to shove and hack Mississippi State's McCowan without reprimand.

     If top overall seed Baylor (35-1) should get by Iowa for a Final 4 spot, the Ducks would once again be forced to deploy a unbalanced defensive scheme in an effort to stop a 6'7 post player, Kalani Brown of the Lady Bears.  They must also find a way to deal with Lauren Cox, a 6'4" Jr. who is a difference maker around the basket.  Together, they would present a formidable obstacle for the Lady Ducks.

     But in Sabrina's World, as we now know, anything is possible.