Butch Alsandor: July 2008 Archives

On Wednesday morning a nice breeze greeted the Texans, but at this point the players didn't really notice.
After 6 days and 12 workouts they are starting to know each other really well.
"We're just competing , the offense will have a really good period and then the defense will come back and
answer the bell with a good period, we go back and forth but its all making us better," said quarterback Matt Schaub.

Meanwhile, veteran Andre Johnson is still feeling his way through training camp. I had a chance to talk to
him as he left the practice field and according to Dre his knee is ho...

>> Continue reading: Texans Day 6, practice no. 11

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It worked for the Boston Celtics, and they have the "bling, bling" to prove it. The Celtics put 3 big names together, Garnett, Pierce, and Allen, producing another title in "Beantown". Can the Rockets do the same thing with Ron Artest joining Tracy Mcgrady and Yao Ming ?

Of course, the question inquiring minds want to know is, will the Rockets get the good Ron Artest, or the bad one. Will they get the elite player who, at 6'7 and 240 pounds is a matchup nightmare for opposing teams, or the one who has the potential to walk on the darkside. Here's hoping channel 11's Jeff McShan never gets a call...

>> Continue reading: Will the Rockets get the good Artest, or the bad one

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The Texans skipped the helmets and shoulder pads in their second workout on Friday.
But that doesn't mean there wasn't any contact. During a pass rush drill, Anthony Weaver head butted Mike Bristel in the nose. Blood was pouring everywhere from Brisiel's nose and his day was done.

Meanwhile, the defense had two big highlights during team drills. First rookie cornerback Anthony Molden ripped a Sage Rosenfels pass right out of David Anderson's hands for a sweet interception.
Then former Cowboys defensive back Jacques Reeves picked off a Matt Schaub offering
and raced down the sideli...

>> Continue reading: Texans Day 1, practice no. 2

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If you thought quarterback Quin Gray had eaten himself right out of the N.F.L. , think again.
When I last saw Gray he was sweating to the "oldies" at Texans mini-camp. He wasn't around very long.
Gray bearly had a cup of coffee with the Texans before coach Kubiak decided it wasn't a good fit.

But Peyton Mannings injury has opened a door for Gray. He and "Bulge Brother", former Giants quarterback Jared Lorenzen are signing with the Colts. So if nothing else, with Gray tipping the scales around 270, and Lorenzen a slim 285 bills, Indianapolis has two of the heftiest quarterbacks you will<...

>> Continue reading: Quin Gray booted by Texans but........

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I was trying to get a read on how the Texans will do in 2008, so I left no stone unturned. Of course you look at how they stack up at each position. Then you compare their skill players to others around the league.
You always have to factor in injuries, and bad calls. How will Peyton Manning's injury figure into this? Will the Texans sweep V.Y. and the Titans ? But I suggest we checkout some other measuring sticks.

Coach Gary Kubiak works his team hard, but he also stays in great shape. Many times Kubiak can be spotted jogging to his office after practice. Maybe we could swipe his workou...

>> Continue reading: Butch puts on "Swami" hat to predict Texans season

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Hey, did you catch the fight at the Palace in Auburn Hills. It was actually a basketball game, but at one point it was hard to tell. With just a little imagination, you could picture ring announcer Michael Buffer doing his thing.

"In this corner checking in at 6'5 and 170 pounds, Lisa Lesss-lieeee! In the other corner weighing in at slightly less than a tank , at 6'10 and well over 3 bills, Rick MaHornnn!" Well, they didn't really square off , but it was a W.-N.B.A. brawl.
That's right, I said W.-N.B.A. brawl! It hasn't happened much in the 12 years of the league, but if boys will be boys, why...

>> Continue reading: W.N.B.A. Fight Club?

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Around noon on Thursday I stopped off at the Crowne Plaza near Reliant Park,
to checkout the weigh-in for Friday's fight card at Reliant Arena.
The event is being hyped as "The Return of theLegends."
Christy Martin is fighting, the legendary Angelo Dundee will be there, but it was
Hector "Macho" Camacho who stole the show at the weigh -in.

First of all, "Macho" made his entrance in typical "Macho Man" fashion wearing
nothing but white sweat pants. Apparently no shirt was required. To quote my photographer Frank McBride, "the only thing he had on his back was the two cham...

>> Continue reading: "Macho Man" hanging loose

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No one talked about doing it "My Way better than Francis Albert Sinatra.
Actually he sang about it. Drayton McLane let Craig Biggio do it his way, at some cost to the Astros. Retirement is a tricky thing. But in sports there are some athletes who have earned the right to go out on their own terms.
Brett Farve is one of those athletes. The only problem is, the Packers thought
that's what he was doing when he walked away from the team and the game 8
months ago.

Now Farve is having second thoughts, or is he. First he asked the Packers for
his release, then his agent say...

>> Continue reading: Does Farve know when to say when

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If you were one of the many Astros fans who booed Brad Lidge you probably feel a little conflicted. I'm sure you've already asked yourself, was he really that bad? Did we kill his confidence? Did we force Drayton to run him out of town?
You can second guess until the cows come home but it won't change a thing. Bradley Thomas Lidge is a Phillie , and he will be until 2011.

Over the weekend Lidge was selected for the all-star team, but he also signed a 37.5 million dollar contract extension. Since going to Philadelphia, Lidge has been almost perfect. His 0.97 ERA and 19 saves prove he's ...

>> Continue reading: Lidge , gone but not forgotten

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We all thought the Rockets had a great draft. Instead of pulling one rabbit out of his hat, General Manager Darly Morey pulled two. Could David Copperfield do that? On paper Donte' Greene of Syracuse, and Joey Dorsey from Memphis appear to be the real deal, now they will get a chance to prove it .

Starting next Wednesday the Rockets summer league team will workout at Toyota Center. It's a chance for the rookies and free agents to get to know each other before playing the 5 game Summer League schedule. Rockets Assistant Elston Turner will be coaching and playing chaperon in Las Vegas. But Elston...

>> Continue reading: For Rockets, what happens in Vegas won't stay in Vegas

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