Giants hire Sam Rosengarten as director of high performance; add 5 football analysts - Giants.com
Zampa rejects idea Australia do not value T20s
Australia depart the T20 World Cup with a thumping, nine-wicket consolation victory over Oman in Pallekele.
Instant analysis of Rams' unique offensive coordinator setup
After losing Mike LaFleur to the Arizona Cardinals, Sean McVay said the Los Angeles Rams would conduct a thorough search for his replacement as offensive coordinator. He wasn’t lying when he said that because the Rams were the last team in the NFL to hire an OC this offseason.
In the end, they landed on the most logical candidate from the start: Nate Scheelhaase. But he’s not their only offensive coordinator. Quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone has added co-offensive coordinator to his job title, too.
A tandem of Scheelhaase and Ragone makes perfect sense. Scheelhaase is 35 and a fast riser who’s destined to be a head coach at some point in the near future. He had several head coaching interviews this offseason despite never being an offensive coordinator in the NFL.
Ragone, on the other hand, is a more experienced assistant coach. Still only 46, he’s coached in the NFL since 2011 when he got his start working with the Titans’ wide receivers. Since then, he’s been a quarterbacks coach for three different teams: Titans (2013), Bears (2016-2019), and Rams (2024-present).
Not to mention, he was the Falcons’ offensive coordinator from 2021-2023, so he’s held this job before. That experience will certainly help Scheelhaase – and in turn, McVay – in his new role as a first-time coordinator.
McVay has never been one to take the conventional approach, and he’s thinking outside the box with this new OC setup. Since being hired as the Rams’ head coach in 2017, McVay has had seasons in which he had one offensive coordinator, no offensive coordinator and now two.
In 2018, the Rams had no designated OC, just a pass game coordinator (Shane Waldron) and run game coordinator (Aaron Kromer). That year, Los Angeles finished with the No. 2 overall offense and No. 2 scoring offense in the NFL, which helped them reach the Super Bowl.
As long as McVay is running the show, the Rams are capable of finishing with a top-10 offense, no matter who their offensive coordinator is. McVay is trying something new with two offensive coordinators, though it sounds like Scheelhaase will be the primary guy in the role.
Having an experienced offensive mind like Ragone, who has worked with Matthew Stafford for the last two years, will only make things easier for everyone involved.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams news: Analysis of LA hiring Nate Scheelhaase as new OC
Who will win Vanderbilt basketball vs Tennessee in SEC rivalry? Our prediction
Vanderbilt basketball is set to take on rival Tennessee for the first time this season as the Vols visit Memorial Gymnasium.
The No. 18 Commodores (21-5, 8-5 SEC) are coming off a loss at Mizzou. Tennessee (19-7, 9-4) has won home games against LSU and Oklahoma most recently.
Vanderbilt has been successful against the Vols at home recently, having won two of the last three matchups at Memorial Gymnasium. Last season, the Commodores split two games with Tennessee, winning the home matchup but dropping the road matchup.
Here is our prediction for the matchup:
Nate Ament is the player to watch
The 6-foot-10 Nate Ament has been the focal point of much of what Tennessee does this season. He is the Vols' leading scorer with 18.2 points per game, but he isn't a traditional big despite his size. He is especially deadly from midrange and can shoot 3-pointers while also averaging 6.4 rebounds per game and having a positive assist-to-turnover ratio.
Ament also gets to the free-throw line a lot, which could prove a handful for Vanderbilt's bigs, Devin McGlockton and Jalen Washington, both of whom have been prone to foul trouble this season. With other bigs on the roster for the Vols, the Commodores may struggle with the sheer size of Tennessee.
The Jaylen Carey storyline
Jaylen Carey made waves when he transferred to Tennessee from Vanderbilt but also criticized Mark Byington and the Commodores' coaching staff. While players have transferred between the Vols and Commodores in other sports, Carey is the first in men's basketball.
Carey has been a role player for Tennessee. He averages 7.8 points and six rebounds per game and shoots just 49% from the field despite having only attempted five 3-pointers all season.
Carey made a big impact in Vanderbilt's games against the Vols last season and perhaps the matchup could be a motivator for him.
Rebounding is something to watch
Tennessee's biggest strength as a team is that it is No. 1 in the country in offensive rebounding percentage, or the percentage of its own missed shots that it rebounds. The Vols are not particularly good at shooting and don't take care of the basketball particularly well − both strengths of Vanderbilt's − but they generate extra possessions. Rebounding has often been a problem for Vanderbilt. The Commodores will either need to show improvement on the boards or make a high percentage of shots to make up for it.
How to watch Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee: Time, TV channel, live stream
- Time: 1 p.m. CT
- TV channel: ESPN
- Stream: Fubo (subscribe today)
Vanderbilt vs Tennessee injury updates
Duke Miles and Frankie Collins both missed the game against Missouri with injuries. It is possible that Miles could return for this game, but if he does it will likely not be at 100%.
JP Estrella missed Tennessee's last game against Oklahoma and is day-to-day.
Vanderbilt vs Tennessee prediction
Vanderbilt 75, Tennessee 69
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt basketball vs Tennessee prediction, picks in SEC showdown
Penn State Hockey Series Preview: Ohio State
No. 5 Penn State returns home for a key Big Ten series against Ohio State. The Nittany Lions are looking to snap an 0-3-1 skid that has effectively ended the team’s chances of winning the conference regular season title. Penn State swept the first series between these teams in Columbus on October 30 and 31.
How to Watch
Who: Ohio State Buckeyes
NPI Ranking (PSU): 27 (5)
When: Friday, February 20 and Saturday, February 21
Where: Pegula Ice Arena, State College, PA
Times: 8:30pm (Friday), 8pm (Saturday)
TV: Big Ten Network (both games)
Radio: Penn State Sports Network
Projected Lineup
Matt DiMarsico-Reese Laubach-JJ Wiebusch
Gavin McKenna-Luke Misa-Aiden Fink
Ben Schoen-Nic Chin-DeGraves-Casey Aman
Shea Van Olm-Lev Katzin-Nick Fascia
Jackson Smith-Jarod Crespo
Cade Christenson-Mac Gadowsky
Carter Schade-Nolan Collins
Josh Fleming
Kevin Reidler
Opponent Preview
It has been a mediocre season for Ohio State, who comes into the season with an 11-16-5 record. The Buckeyes have won three of their last four games, including a 3-2 home win over Wisconsin last Saturday, but this team has been inconsistent since the beginning of the season.
Davis Burnside and Max Montes each have 11 goals to lead the way for the offense. Jake Karabela, Felix Caron, Riley Thompson, and Adam Eisele all have at least 8 goals as well, giving this team enough scoring options to hang with a depleted Penn State lineup. Ohio State gets 31.7 shots on goal per game, good for 20th in the NCAA. The Buckeyes found success offensively in the first series between these teams this season, but Penn State made enough plays to secure the road sweep.
Defensively, Ohio State is a bit of a mess, giving up 3.4 goals per game (49th in NCAA). They are above average at preventing shots on goal (27th), but the goaltending has taken a big step back from last year’s squad. As a team, Ohio State’s team save percentage is .883, tied with Notre Dame for the worst mark in the conference and 59th in the NCAA. Kristoffer Eberly (.886 save percentage, 3.26 GAA) has regressed significantly from last season, which has been one of the biggest culprits in the Buckeyes’ fall from last season.
Ohio State is 22.7% on the power play (17th in NCAA) and 75.5% on the penalty kill (T-51st in NCAA). Poor goaltending has negatively affected this team’s penalty kill, and Penn State will need to take advantage.
News & Notes
- Fans attending this weekend’s games should be aware of parking and traffic changes due to THON.
- Penn State captain Dane Dowiak will miss the remainder of the season due to an injury.
- Aiden Fink was named an alternate captain for the rest of the season.
- Ohio State leads the all-time series 28-25-5.
- Ohio State is 1-5-1 in overtime games this season.
- Penn State enters the weekend with a 99.4% chance to make the NCAA Tournament.
Prediction
Down to 10 healthy forwards, this will be a more difficult series for Penn State than I might normally expect. Fortunately, this series is at home and Ohio State has had poor goaltending this year. Ohio State has enough firepower to keep the games close, but the Nittany Lions will find a way to win the series, and likely officially secure their spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Penn State 4-3, 4-2