Big Z Throws No-No

In a game that was to be played in Houston but was moved to Milwaukee in the wake of Hurricane Ike, Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano, who had not pitched since September 2nd due to arm trouble, no hit the Astros. He walked Michale Bourne in the bottom of the fourth inning, which kept him from a perfect game. The Cubs last no hitter was thrown by Milt Pappas on September 2nd, 1972.

Pats Do It Without Brady

Offensive flare may put fans in the seat, but it's defense that wins championships.

The New England Patriots returned to that motto on Sunday with a 19-10 victory over the New York Jets. Led by sacks from Richard Seymour and Adalius Thomas and seven tackles from rookie linebackers Jerod Mayo the Patriots were able to limit Brett Farve and the Jets to 250 yards of total offense.

Matt Cassel, making his first start since his senior year in high school, was steady throughout, not putting up impressive numbers but managing the game well in a winning effort. Stephen Gostkowski paced New England offensively with four field goals.

This is a good start for the Brady-less Pats. They will look to make it 3-0 against the Miami Dolphins next week.

Brett Who?

All is well in the land of the cheezehead.

Aaron Rodgers is making Packers fans quickly forget the former hall-of-fame quarterback. Led by Rodgers' three first half touchdown passes the Green Bay Packers cursed to a 48-25 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday. Rodgers, who finished the day 24 of 38 for 328 yards and 3 TD's, impressed throughout with his excellent arm strength.

Thats two weeks in a row that Rodgers has led the Packers to a convincing victory. He is making the Packers' decision to go with the inexperienced 24 year old over the 38 year old veteran a good one.

McFadden, Raiders Save Kiffin

At 33 years old Lane Kiffin is the youngest head coach in the NFL. He just may get to keep that title for another week as Kiffin's Oakland Raiders defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 23-8 on Sunday. Led by Darren McFadden's career high 164 yards rushing, including a nineteen yard touchdown run, the Raiders looked a lot more like the team owner Al Davis and company expected than the deer in headlights team they looked like in week one.

Rumors have circulated all week regarding the potential firing of Kiffin if things in Oakland did not get turned around in a hurry. Kiffin and Davis have bumped heads several times over the past few months prompting Davis to go as far as saying "he's not the guy I hired."

It will be interesting to see just how much time this win will buy Kiffin. It was a much better effort on the field in week two, but the Raiders only have so much to work with. Its just a matter of time before they get blown out again and the drama continues.

K-Rod Breaks Record with 58 Saves

Los Angeles Angels Closer, Francisco Rodriguez has broken Bobby Thigpen's single-season save record by recording his 58^th save last night.

Week 2 - Match-up Of the Week

New England @ N.Y. Jets

The first game of the Matt Cassel era is here. For those of you who have been living under a rock the past week, Tom Brady suffered a season ending knee injury last Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Patriots offense was still functional following Brady's injury. Cassel led on a couple of nice drives including a bomb to Randy Moss for a touchdown on Cassel's first series of the season. You have to wonder just how well he will fare in is first start since high school against the Pats top rival in the AFC East.

From the Jets side, if you are a Jets fan you have to be licking you chops. Week 2, at home, Brett Farve as your quarterback, against a Brady-less Patriots team who you always get up to play anyway. If there was a opportunity for the Jets to make a statement as a true contender in the AFC East, today is the day.

It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. Be sure to check WAY Back Sports for the latest developments in then NFL today as the game progress.

Week 2 is Upon Us

Its that time of week again! Time to sit back and enjoy a full day of the NFL. Be sure to check WAY Back Sports for all the latest NFL news as the games progress.

K-Rod Ties Single Season Save Record

Los Angeles Angels closer, Francisco Rodriguez, earned his 57^th save of the season last night in a 7-4 win over Seattle. With that save, K-Rod tied the single season saves record, set by Bobby Thigpen in 1990 as a member of the Chicago White Sox. K-Rod may get a chance to break the record tonight when the Angles face off against the Mariners. If he does not get the chance tonight, he will have 15 more chances until the end of September to get it done. 

Odds are that K-Rod will be able to break the record and possibly put the number of saves in a single season over 60. There is no doubt that K-Rod has been a dominant closer for many years, but it is interesting to note that he breaks the record in the final year of his contract. In the open market, K-Rod will command top dollar from any team wishing to have his services, and after a record breaking year like this, I would say he has earned it.

Saturday's Big 3: Week 3

Another college football Saturday is almost upon us, so let's take a look at the top three games for week 3.

3) #10 Wisconsin at #21 Fresno State
Fresno State coach Pat Hill has made a carrier of playing any team at any time at any venue. The Bulldogs traveled across the country to play Rutgers and got a victory. Wisconsin is lead by tailback P.J. Hill, a bruising, downhill runner whose already racked up four TD's in two games. I like Wisconsin going to the west coast and getting the win.

2) #2 Georgia at South Carolina
It's a clash in the SEC as National Champion hopefuls Georgia take on the old ball coach and South Carolina. Georgia RB Knowshon Moreno is showing everyone why he is a real threat to win the Heisman, scoring 6 times in the first two games. But this is 'Dogs first test on the road and the Gamecocks will be looking to get a loss to Vanderbilt out of their heads. This is an easy pick, I'm taking Georgia.

1) #5 Ohio State at #1 Southern California
This is the match up that college football fans have been waiting to see since the schedule came out. It is by far the most anticipated regular season game this year. The hype machine has been on all week for the so called 'clash in the coliseum'.

Ohio State did not look goodt after a narrow escape against Ohio, a game they played without their top runner, Chris "Beanie" Wells. USC has not played a game since their 52-7 trouncing of Virgina in week one.

Ohio State's D is lead by James Laurinaitis, and he'll be busy trying to stop the Trojan offense with RB Joe McKinght and QB Mark Sanchez, who looked great week one. USC is led by hard-hitting LB Rey Maualuga, who will have his hands full when Ohio State brings in dual threat QB Terrelle Pryor.

With or without Wells, who is a game-time decision to play, I see a victory for USC. I wouldn't be surprised if they won by 2 or more touchdowns.

735 Days—Shaq Calls his own Retirement

Phoenix Suns center, Shaquille O'Neal told a Florida television station that his NBA career would be over in 735 days. O'Neal plans to play the remaining two years left on his contract, and then call it career. The 36-year-old was bothered by injuries last season and hopes to rebound in the final two years of his campaign. As confident a man and player as Shaq is, perhaps it is a little too early to announce retirement. A decision to retire is final and not negotiable in any way, just ask Brett Favre.