PAGE 2B
Zscores “
SATURDAY, JANUARY 15, 2011
FOOTNOTE Continued from Page 1B
say yes and that ripple effect has continued throughout the last three years,” said Todd Melloh, the Samaritan’s Feet spokesman. Hunter’s goal this year is to collect 150,000 pairs of shoes, 50,000 of which will go to Houston’s impoverished children during the Final Four. He did the same thing in Detroit and Indy the past two years. There has been some discussion about starting a similar tradition at the women’s Final Four. The NCAA has gotten involved, too, organizing the distribution of shoes and recruiting athletic directors and university presidents to help. This summer, Hunter is planning to spend five weeks overseas, handing out shoes. And the program seems to expand every year. For the first time in 2010, Samaritan’s Feet volunteers washed feet and gave shoes to Indy’s impoverished children on the
You know, if I couldn’t do this, I’d never take another job. Thankfully, our chancellor here allows me to do it.” RON HUNTER, IUPUI COACH
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. On Monday, 12 more cities will take part in the activities. Celebrities ranging from poet Maya Angelou to television announcer and former NBA player Clark Kellogg, and musician Big Kenny of the country music duo Big & Rich are scheduled to participate. Jay Hein, the former White House director of Faith Based Initiatives, is also expected to help. “We’ve always washed the feet, and that’s what differentiates us,” Melloh said. “We believe the exchange between the recipient and the giver is an amazing exchange of love.”
Since the organization started in 2003, it has handed out more than 2 million pairs of shoes around the globe. Yet Hunter knows that’s still not nearly enough. The group says more than 300 million children worldwide go shoeless every day. In almost every interview, Hunter encourages people to experience life without shoes for a day. This year, Hunter has promised to go barefoot at any game where the opposing coach does the same. There have already been two takers — North Dakota State’s Saul Phillips and South Dakota State’s Scott Nagy. Unfor-
tunately, that doesn’t leave much time to recover between the games on Feb. 10 and 12. But Hunter, who is 3-1 all-time in barefoot games, isn’t worried about his feet or wins or losses. “I’ll always do it on Martin Luther King weekend, whether we’re home or away. And if we’re away, I’ll do it again at home another time,” Hunter said. “It’s really about losing your comfort level a little bit, and when I get off the plane in those countries and I see those kids, it’s like Christmas Day because their eyes just light up. You just can’t believe it.”
FALCONS PACKERS Continued from Page 1B gets. The franchise boasts 21 members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and surely has at least one more on the way with Brett Favre, who actually began his career with the Falcons but was traded away in one of the game’s great personnel blunders. The Packers’ list of greats includes coach Vince Lombardi, whose influence on the game was so profound the NFL put his name on its championship trophy shortly after his death in 1970. No one has considered naming a trophy after anyone from the Falcons. Heck, the team has yet to send even one player to Canton; the best it can do is Eric Dickerson and Tommy McDonald, two Hall of Famers who played briefly for Atlanta late in their careers. And when it comes to coaches, the team with the odd-looking bird logo can’t come close to Lombardi or Curly Lambeau, who guided the Packers to their first six NFL titles in the 1930s and ’40s. OK, the Falcons did hire one of Lombardi’s assistants, Norb Hecker, as their first head coach in 1966. But his record was a very un-Vince-like 4-26-1, which pretty much sums up the divide between these two franchises. “That organization over there, they’ve been doing it for a long time,” Roddy White said. “They’ve pretty much got the Super Bowl trophy named after their squad and their coach. So, they’ve got a lot of good tradition. They’ve done a lot of good things in this league.” The Packers insist they’re looking forward, but there’s no doubt they’ve got an eye on their legacy. Green Bay hasn’t won a Super Bowl since the 1996 season. Longtime Packers such as receiver Donald Driver figure that’s long enough.
FTC tackles helmet safety, marketing
Even though he grew up in Georgia, Packers defensive lineman Jarius Wynn never really cheered for the Falcons. There wasn’t much reason, given their track record.
Photo by Dave Martin | AP
Atlanta Falcons punt return specialist Eric Weems (14) reacts after returning a punt for a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers in the first half at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on Jan. 2. “We all know exactly what sits in front of us,” Driver said. “We want that trophy. It’s named after us. We need to get it back home, where it belongs.” Even though he grew up in Georgia, Packers defensive lineman Jarius Wynn never really cheered for the Falcons. There wasn’t much reason, given their track record. “It would have been REAL tough to be a Falcons fan,” Wynn said. He played his college ball for the Georgia Bulldogs, a team with plenty of history and titles. Still, it didn’t match up to what he found in Green Bay. “We had tradition, going back to Herschel Walker and winning the national
championship,” Wynn said of his college team. “But here, it’s a whole new level.” Thankfully for the Falcons, Saturday night’s game won’t be played in a history book. They’ve earned home-field advantage for only the second time and intend to take advantage of it. They won’t have to worry about Lombardi calling one of his famous sweeps. Or Starr sneaking into a frigid end zone for the winning touchdown. This game will be played indoors in the 72-degree comfort of the Georgia Dome, contested by players who weren’t even born when those guys were dominating pro football, in
front of a mostly red-clad crowd that has helped turn the Falcons into a virtually unbeatable squad on its own field. “None of that matters,” Falcons safety William Moore said. “When those lights come on, those players from the past ain’t playing that night. It’s just about who’s going to come out and play ball that night.” Atlanta has played some good ball ever since the new regime — general manager Thomas Dimitroff and coach Mike Smith — took over in 2008. Quickly bouncing back from a miserable season in which franchise quarterback Michael Vick went to prison and coach Bobby Petrino abandoned the team after just 13 games, the Falcons made the playoffs as a wild card in Year 1 of what everyone figured would be a multiseason rebuilding job. Injuries scuttled a return trip to the playoffs in 2009, but the Falcons removed another stigma from their sad history by winning the final three games to go 9-7 — the first consecutive winning seasons for the franchise. Now, it’s three in a row, with the best record in the NFC for good measure. Anything less than a Super Bowl title will be considered a disappointment for a team loaded with offensive stars (White, quarterback Matt Ryan, tight end Tony Gonzalez, running back Michael Turner) and plenty of up-and-comers on defense. “That sure would look good on a banner in the Dome,” Moore said.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Federal Trade Commission says his agency is looking into marketing claims that some football helmets can help reduce concussions, responding to a senator who wants the FTC to investigate what he called "misleading safety claims and deceptive practices" in the sale of new helmets and reconditioning of used ones. "We agree that these are serious concerns, and will determine what action by this agency may be appropriate," FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz wrote to Sen. Tom Udall, D.M. "Given the dangers that concussions pose for young athletes engaged in contact sports, it is essential that advertising for products claiming to reduce the risk of this injury be truthful and substantiated," he added. In the letter, obtained Friday by The Associated Press, Leibowitz said that issues involving serious health concerns — especially those for children and young adults — are a "high priority for the commission." He said the commission would look at several factors "in determining whether to take enforcement or other action." Leibowitz was responding to a Jan. 4 letter from Udall, who said he was “troubled by misleading marketing claims by Riddell, a leading helmet maker that supplies the official helmet to the National Football League.” He quoted Riddell’s website as saying that “research shows a 31 percent reduction in the risk of concussion in players wearing a Riddell Revolution football helmet when compared to traditional helmets." “Yet there is actually very little scientific evidence to support the claim," Udall
said, adding that the voluntary industry standard for football helmets doesn’t specifically address concussion prevention or reduction. The senator also mentioned another helmet manufacturer, Schutt Sports. At the time of Udall’s letter, Schutt Sports said it never claimed its helmets were "concussion reducing." On Friday, the company said it didn’t have anything to add in response to the FTC letter. Riddell, which had called Udall’s allegations "unfounded and unfair," had no immediate comment Friday. FTC spokeswoman Betsy Lordan said the commission could decide to launch an investigation, but wouldn’t confirm or deny one until it either closed the investigation without bringing charges, or announced it was bringing charges of deceptive advertising. Stephen Ross, a former FTC lawyer who now directs the Penn State Institute for Sports Law, Policy and Research, said the commission has several options if it decides to pursue action against companies, including a cease-and-desist order. In a statement, Udall said he was "pleased and encouraged that Chairman Leibowitz shares my serious concerns about misleading football helmet safety claims in advertising by sports equipment companies. This is a safety issue with the potential to impact every child that plays football." Last fall, Udall asked the Consumer Product Safety Commission to investigate whether safety standards for football helmets are adequate to protect young players from concussions. Concussion and other head injuries are receiving increased attention at all levels of sports, from the NFL on down to Pop Warner, the nation’s oldest and largest youth football organization.
BBALL Continued from Page 1B are a very athletic team. I am just happy that they are practicing and playing games with great determination. I am very proud of our team.” In Tuesday’s district matchup against La Feria, the Lady Hawks got off to a slow start, managing only 11 points in the opening quarter and allowing the Lady Lions to stay close in the game. La Feria posed the most viable threat to the Lady Hawks, with sole possession of first place on the line. Zapata (15-4) utilized a combination of offensive explosiveness from King and a great defensive effort by the entire team to walk
away with a 58-39 victory. Zapata started to find its offensive rhythm in the second quarter, going inside to King and the sureshooting Selina Mata to start pulling away from La Feria. Mata connected on eight points, with the majority coming from the perimeter. La Feria had no answer for King who worked the glass and took advantage of her incredible leaping ability. The Lady Hawks played last night against La Grulla on the road to continue their quest for a district title. Read today’s Laredo Morning Times for results from the game.
RAVENS STEELERS Continued from Page 1B win in Baltimore on Dec. 5. The Ravens were within a couple of first downs of securing a 10-6 win, but Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu caused a Joe Flacco fumble that led to Ben Roethlisberger’s winning 9-yard touchdown pass with 2:51 remaining. Just like that, a season flipped. But Steelers coach Mike Tomlin cautions the Ravens are capable of “flipping the script” in a series that’s so close, each of the last four games was decided by three points. The combined score since 2003 is Ravens 302, Steelers 302. Still, the Ravens are 0-2 in the postseason in Heinz Field, where new sod was put down amid a series of snowy days that followed the NHL’s Winter Classic between the Capitals and
Penguins on Jan. 1. That was hockey in the rain. This will be football with snow flurries, temperatures in the 20s and emotions that will be super heated. Former Steelers linebacker Joey Porter proved that when he tried to climb aboard the Ravens’ bus and fight Lewis in 2003. So did Plaxico Burress and James Trapp when they fought on the field in 2002. So did the Ravens, who stood mocking an oft-sacked Ben Roethlisberger in 2006. Perhaps that wasn’t a good idea; Roethlisberger is 6-0 against them since then. The numerous injuries illustrate the physical nature of the rivalry. Porter’s dangerous hit on an unprotected Todd Heap in 2004 still infuriates the Ravens. Lewis ended running back
Rashard Mendenhall’s rookie season by breaking his shoulder in 2008. Ravens linebacker Jameel McClain’s helmet hit on Heath Miller last month caused a concussion and led to a $40,000 fine. In the same game, Haloti Ngata smacked Roethlisberger in the face, breaking the quarterback’s nose with a hit that cost him a $15,000 fine. “We’re similar styles, we’re physical and we try to impose our will on each other,” Steelers nose tackle Casey Hampton said. “I think both teams try to see themselves as bullies.” For the Ravens, perhaps there’s a tinge of envy that the Steelers always seem to gain the upper hand when it matters; they are 2-8 against Roethlisberger. Ravens quarterback Joe Flac-
co, who threw two touchdown passes in a 30-7 wildcard dismantling of Kansas City last weekend, is 0-5 when he starts against Roethlisberger. While Baltimore is 7-3 in road playoff games, Pittsburgh is 8-0 — zero losses in 40 years — when it meets a division rival in the postseason. “Some stats you keep up with, some you don’t care about,” Lewis said. “I don’t care. We can’t pack a bag with 40 years on it and say, ‘Hey guys, look what we haven’t done in 40 years.’ Forget it.” The Ravens rebounded from last month’s loss to win their last five, with Heap — who missed nearly all the Dec. 5 game with a hamstring injury — making 10 catches against Kan-
sas City. Ray Rice was held to 52 yards in the two regular-season games, but is the only opposing back in 50 games to run for more than 100 yards against the Steelers’ league-leading rushing defense. There’s much to worry the Ravens, too, as the Steelers have won six of seven. Polamalu, bothered for weeks by a sore right Achilles’ tendon, is the healthiest he’s been since midseason. Roethlisberger, under constant pressure last month from linebacker Terrell Suggs, often uses his size and strength to extend plays that appear to have broken down. Wide receiver Mike Wallace, who will be playing in his first postseason game, has seven catches of 40-plus yards and
possesses the kind of speed the Ravens haven’t seen elsewhere. “He hit a gear that I didn’t even know existed in a human being on a little pop pass Ben threw to him (against Carolina),” Suggs said. “I was like, ‘Wow, that’s just amazing.”’ There’s often a ‘wow’ factor in Ravens-Steelers games. Ward knows he doesn’t want to experience the opposite feeling, especially given that, due to the NFL’s unstable labor situation, the loser won’t know when it will play again. “We know what’s at stake, and whoever wins this game will have to think about that loss all offseason,” Ward said. “It’s going to be physical. And it usually comes down to the fourth quarter.”