05/10/2008

Honoring Dad
Nicole Long started playing tennis in the first grade, when her father, James, took her out to neighborhood courts. Watching her husband and daughter made Geri Long laugh.

Grand Prairie AirHogs must draw fans to new stadium – and keep them there 
With only days left until the first pitch in the AirHogs' home opener Friday, the team's front office is making a pitch of its own.

05/04/2008

Rookie DE a free spirit for Dallas Cowboys

TOM FOX / DMN

Marcus Dixon is trying to make the Dallas Cowboys' roster as an undrafted rookie defensive end.

An elaborate tattoo stretches from the top of Marcus Dixon's left shoulder and contains a passage from Revelation 20:1-3. On the inside of his left forearm, Psalms 91 is tattooed in cursive. If you had been to hell and back like Dixon, you'd understand why he's permanently engraved religious passages on his body, writes DMN columnist Jean-Jacques Taylor.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

Patriots, Colts differ from rest at draft time

Getty Images

UCLA's Matt Slater was taken in the fifth round by the Patriots, who were attracted by his special teams play.

Two teams befuddle me each year in the NFL draft – Indianapolis and New England, writes DMN pro football columnist Rick Gosselin. Most teams identify ability on the draft board and select it when they go on the clock. But not the Colts and Patriots. They don't covet the best available player with their picks. They covet the best available fit.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

04/19/2008

High school linemen get a unique chance to show who is strongest
Linemen labor anonymously in their fields, untouched by glory, unnoticed until a quarterback gets trampled. Jeremy Colvert's remedy for the condition: The Lineman Challenge.

04/13/2008

Great NFL draft debate: Go pro or stay?

G.J. McCARTHY / DMN

Curtis Lofton's solid junior season made his decision to declare for the NFL draft easier.

Teams have drafted juniors with the first overall selection in the last three drafts and in 11 of the 18 drafts since the NFL opened the door to underclassmen in 1990, writes DMN pro football columnist Rick Gosselin. Juniors have gone 1-2 in the last two drafts. Juniors went 1-2-3 in 1994 and 1-2-3-4 in 1997. Fourteen juniors were selected in the first round in 2007 and a record 15 in 2004.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

Life's grand for Detroit High senior slammer
When Michael Chesshire looked down at his coach in the fifth inning against Yantis last month, the bases loaded and the game tight, he couldn't believe what he saw. Mike Barley flashed the home run sign.

04/05/2008

NASCAR taking steps to keep its core fans happy
NASCAR took note of increasing numbers of empty seats and declining television ratings during the 2006 and '07 Cup seasons. The racing giant has addressed what it considers erosion to its foundation, the core fans who have followed the sport for years.

Woods' Grand Slam quest raises bar

Getty Images

Tiger Woods has won seven of his last nine starts.

Tiger Woods begins his annual quest for the Grand Slam on Thursday at Augusta National. "I can see Tiger doing it," Palmer said last month at his Bay Hill tournament. Not only is Woods in top form, but the venues set up well for him.

Killer weed invasion
Q&A with Earl Chilton, TP&W Aquatic Habitat Enhancement Program Director

03/30/2008

Big picture is Texas Rangers' focus

G.J. McCARTHY / DMN

Josh Hamilton is one player under 26 who could play a key role this season for the Texas Rangers.

2008 Preview: A real possibility exists the Texas Rangers will finish third or fourth in the AL West for the ninth consecutive year. How can the Rangers convince themselves – and perhaps more important, owner Tom Hicks and fans – that they are making progress?
• Rangers preview stories
 Blog: Texas Rangers

Duty calls: Army says Cadets can turn pro now

JON MALINOWSKI / Special to DMN

Army safety Caleb Campbell (left) and punter Owen Tolson pose in their cadet uniforms at the United States Military Academy's Michie Stadium.

A recently implemented rule at the U.S. Military Academy could change the way cadets are selected in April's NFL draft. And two cadets from Texas, including punter Owen Tolson of Richardson's Canyon Creek Christian Academy, could get drafted this year.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

Perfect ending to a career
Of the hundreds of college basketball teams at any level, men's and women's, big or small, only one went undefeated this season.

03/23/2008

Brahmas rising from the ashes
The fact that the Texas Brahmas have become the hottest team in the Central Hockey League and ended the regular season on a 23-5-1 run is the stuff of hockey fairytales.

Move to Dallas was the start of something big for Lieberman
Her first day in Dallas, the self-described smart aleck from Queens, N.Y., was asked how she liked Texas.

03/15/2008

Plano soccer club a rising star
It's taken nearly three decades for the Andromeda Soccer Club to become an overnight sensation. The inclusion of the Andromeda '90 boys team in the Super Group of the Dallas Cup, which begins today, and the team's under-17 national championship last summer has significantly increased the visibility of the Plano-based club that formed in 1980.

03/08/2008

Role in fraud ruins dreams for Texas Rangers' prospects

AP

Texas Rangers prospect Omar Beltre, pitching in the Caribbean Series, may never get to prove himself in the major leagues.

For four consecutive years, Texas Rangers prospects Omar Beltre and Alexi Ogando have been denied entry into the United States because of their roles in a marriage fraud scandal in 2004 that involved approximately 30 Dominican minor leaguers.
 Blog: Texas Rangers

Spring turkey hunting preview
Thanks to a mild, wet spring and summer last year, there are lots of Rio Grande birds.

Football took its toll on ex-Dallas Cowboy Buddy Dial

DMN file photo

Buddy Dial, an All-American receiver for Rice, went on to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys. He died Feb. 29 in Houston. He was 71.

In 1964, the Dallas Cowboys planned to use the fourth pick of the first round on a player out of Ohio State (Paul Warfield). But the Steelers called at the last minute with a proposition, and Tom Landry liked the player they offered, writes DMN columnist Kevin Sherrington. So the Cowboys drafted Scott Appleton from Texas and traded him for Buddy Dial.

03/07/2008

Ticket quests challenge Dallas' pro athletes

LOUIS DeLUCA / DMN

Jason Terry routinely fills ticket requests from family when the Dallas Mavericks visit Seattle.

Every season, when they play on the road, Dallas' professional athletes engage in the art of mass ticket-buying for everyone in their lives. Anybody with Internet skills, street smarts, dogged determination and deep pockets can get a pair of tickets to a game. Just try to score 50 or 60.

03/01/2008

In death, Grapevine's Chris Gavora gave life to others
Brad Walker can ride his bicycle 15 to 20 miles now. He is going back to college to finish his degree.

A pioneer in sportswriting grew up loving games with family
As she once put it, Margaret Koy Kistler became a "partner" with her father, Ernie Koy Sr., when she was 2. "The most natural place in the world for me," she told The Dallas Morning News more than 40 years ago, "was sitting beside him at a game."
 Archive: Bellville's Koy family has been bullish on football for three generations (11/10/1999)

A silver streak for SportsDay
SportsDay's excellence remains one constant in the ever changing wide world of sports.

02/24/2008

Think you're NFL material? Let's talk

Getty Images

Dallas Cowboys OL Marc Colombo tells players "You're your own CEO."

Classes to prepare players for the NFL Scouting Combine have become a hot commodity as players look to deduct a tenth of a second from their time in the 40-yard dash or add another repetition to their weightlifting test. But they are also being coached on interview techniques.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

02/16/2008

NASCAR's premier event lives up to its billing
History and the future will meet today at Daytona International Speedway. Not only is the Daytona 500 the start of another NASCAR season, it's also the 50th running of the sport's biggest race.

Kid stuff: Texas eighth-graders jump to national prominence

LOUIS DeLUCA / DMN

At 14, Zach Peters of Plano is already 6-9, one reason why the Hoop Scoop rating service ranks him as the top eighth-grade basketball prospect in the nation.

Zach Peters of Plano is 6-9 and weighs 220 pounds. He's ranked as one of the top boys basketball prospects in the nation - for the class of 2012. Peters is 14 years old. John Crowder, 15, is the No. 5 prospect for 2012. Some college coaches may say it is insane to rank eighth-graders. But most can dissect the boys' games to the most detailed nuance.
Video: Boys chasing hoop dreams
Archive: Telfair was a marked man as a seventh-grader

02/09/2008

'New' Knight puts friendly face on intensity

Getty Images

Pat Knight has dived into his new job with eyes wide open and a keen sense of perspective.

Those who know new Texas Tech men's basketball coach Pat Knight insist his approachability - the polar opposite of his legendary father, Bob - is genuine. They cite personality as the No. 1 reason his daunting task of succeeding his father might actually work.
Archive: Different as Knight and day
• Tech falls | More Tech
Blog: Colleges

01/26/2008

Faith brings Texas Rangers' Hamilton back from the brink

Washington Post

New Rangers center fielder Josh Hamilton, here with his daugher, Sierra, lost 3 1/2 seasons to drug addiction before being signed in 2006 by Cincinnati.

Faith. It comes up often in the story of 26-year-old Joshua Holt Hamilton. It's virtually impossible to tell his story without it. Faith, the Texas Rangers' future center fielder testifies, put him back in baseball after four years of addiction problems that almost destroyed his life.

01/27/2008

Storied passes from former Texas booster
Rooster Andrews, who died last week at 84, often found himself the hub of Austin's celebrity wheel even when a couple of big names were just passing through.

01/20/2008

Controversy over classic race put to rest
More than 40 years after Clyde Glosson and Warren McVea had a classic 100-yard race in San Antonio, McVea has fessed up about the controversial outcome.

01/19/2008

Of all the major sports events, one stands out

AP

The British Open ranks among the top 10 days on the sports calendar, Tim Cowlishaw writes.

Championship Sunday blows the Super Bowl away when it comes to the passion of the home fans witnessing the completion of the mission to get to the Super Bowl. It's one of the best days on the sports calendar, but not quite right at the top, writes DMN columnist Tim Cowlishaw.
 Tell Us: What’s the best day in sports?

01/13/2008

Dallas Cowboys coach's family made for football

VERNON BRYANT / DMN

Wade Phillips' wife of 38 years, Laurie, praises her husband's forward thinking as he faces his first playoff game as head coach in eight years.

Today's divisional playoff game between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants at Texas Stadium can't rectify the result of Wade Phillips' last playoff game – a 22-16 loss to Tennessee in the "Music City Miracle." But in terms of 60-year-old Wade's head coaching legacy, a victory today would constitute a do-over.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

01/12/2008

Bill Masterton's death changed hockey forever 

Courtesy of Masterton family

Bill Masterton led the University of Denver Pioneers to NCAA titles in 1960 and '61.

The death of Bill Masterton 40 years ago this week was tragic, unnecessary and foolish. And it changed hockey forever. Such is the legacy of the only man who died because of injuries caused in an NHL game.

New York area is king of the hill
When it comes to winning titles, the Big Apple and its outpost in East Rutherford, N.J., are second to none.

01/13/2008

Temple's not the first to barge into Maegle's feat
Dicky Maegle was gracious when Missouri's Tony Temple broke his Cotton Bowl rushing record, which is not how you'd describe his feelings for the man bent on keeping him from it 54 years ago, writes columnist Kevin Sherrington.

12/29/2007

Missouri quarterback Daniel did what he could to be the best

LOUIS DeLUCA/DMN

Bill Daniel did all he could to help son Chase achieve his goals. The Missouri quarterback, a former Southlake Carroll star, will face Arkansas in Tuesday's Cotton Bowl.

Chase Daniel, the Heisman Trophy finalist who will quarterback Missouri against Arkansas in Tuesday's AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic, was 10 years old when his father saw the light.

OU's English reaches new heights after 104-foot fall
Auston English remembers waking up to the taste of blood and dirt.

Out of tragic loss comes inspiration for Redskins
The team the Dallas Cowboys face today at FedEx Field (3:15 p.m., Ch. 4) is the hottest in the NFC with a coach praised for his calm and compassion in the wake of a tragic event.

12/23/2007

No worries as Texas A&M waits
Come Wednesday, Mike Sherman will have been Texas A&M's football coach for one month. From the outside, it doesn't look as if he's done much. School officials say he has not ignored his duties despite his NFL commitments.

Marcus Griffin makes name for himself at Texas
One thing is clear as Texas heads into its showdown with Arizona State in the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl on Thursday: Marcus Griffin has finally climbed out of the shadow of his more outgoing, higher-profile twin brother.

Mitchell report was swing and a miss

AP

Former senator George Mitchell investigated performance-enhancing drug use in baseball.

Next to newspaper attempts, official investigations carry the weight of authenticity, writes Kevin Sherrington. But when George Mitchell's long-awaited, 20-month probe into baseball's biggest scandal since the Black Sox was unwrapped, it contained newspaper clippings and canceled checks and some old phone bills.

12/15/2007

Ex-linebacker tougher than ever as he faces cancer
The toughest pro football player of the last half-century wrote a brief, heartfelt note last month to his old Fort Worth North Side classmates.

Young duck-hunting fanatics hooked on quack
It's not easy being a duck hunter, especially on a cold, dreary, rainy day when ducks refuse to cooperate. Duck hunters roll out of their warm beds when most citizens are logging their restful REM sleep.
 Video: Hunting quail on horseback

Scales tipping to Dallas Cowboys

JASON DUGGER / DMN Illustration

None of the Dallas Cowboys will gloat about ending Philadelphia's reign in the NFC East. This team is so centered, so focused on winning today's game at Texas Stadium (3:15 p.m., Ch. 4) and earning a first-round bye in the playoffs, no one wants to ruffle the Eagles' already-clipped feathers.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

12/08/2007

Texas Rangers' Young helps lift spirits of a fellow shortstop

MICHELE PEACOCK / Wipe Out Kids' Cancer

Carson Leslie, whose favorite baseball player is Derek Jeter, received a surprise phone call while paired with the Texas Rangers' Michael Young at a golf tournament benefiting Wipe Out Kids' Cancer.

In October of 2006, 15-year-old Carson Leslie was diagnosed with a tumor the size of a pingpong ball on his brain stem. After having surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, Carson has had three clean scans. Through the Make-a-Wish Foundation and Wipe Out Kids' Cancer, a Dallas-based organization, he participated in a golf tournament paired with Texas Rangers' shortstop Michael Young and got to speak via phone to his favorite player – Derek Jeter, as DMN columnist Kevin Sherrington writes in his latest installment of Sunday Brunch.
 Blog: Texas Rangers

Rompola, ex-SMU coach are a match made in hardwood heaven
Heck yeah, Rhonda Rompola wanted to celebrate her man.

Kansas' grain-rich fields are place to be for pheasants
When John Denver wrote about a windy Kansas wheat field, I don't think he had 50 mph winds in mind. Luckily, the howling winds whipping up a minor dust storm were warm and southerly. Otherwise, we might have died from exposure within minutes of exiting Jeff White's big crew cab truck.
 Video: Pheasant hunting in Kansas

12/01/2007

New A&M coach Sherman has heart of a champion

ERICH SCHLEGEL / DMN

Mike Sherman (above) spent nine hours at the home of Carlos Ramirez visiting with Carlos' son, Steven, an Aggie fan stricken with muscular dystrophy.

Carlos Ramirez of Plano figures if new Aggies football coach Mike Sherman makes one-tenth the impression on recruits that he did on his son during a 1996 visit to their home, Texas A&M football assuredly will return to elite status.
In previous stints at A&M, Sherman earned trust

Malone finds new life at Abilene Christian
Billy Don Malone doesn't introduce himself with the three-pronged version of his name anymore, so when he hears it, he can tell how long you've known him.

Adams happy to be Dallas Cowboys' quiet man

G.J. McCARTHY / DMN

Flozell Adams (right) was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1998.

Flozell Adams is a three-time Pro Bowler who has started 140 out of 156 games at various spots on the Dallas Cowboys' offensive line during his 10-year career. For as much noise as Adams makes on the field, he is a quiet soul away from it. He rarely speaks to reporters, if at all. Some of his teammates don't even know him.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

11/24/2007

Fans are losers in NFL Network impasse

DMN Staff illustration: Getty Images

The NFL hoped the promise of a Green Bay Packers-Dallas Cowboys extravaganza in its second season of broadcasting games would ignite a run of viewers demanding their cable carriers offer the NFL Network. But a funny thing has happened to the most irresistible force in the sports universe. The league has run into an immovable object: big cable carriers.

Prime time for bucks
Clark Coleman was deer hunting in Hamilton County early in the season when he decided to do his part for management and take a doe off the range. A likely candidate came along, and Coleman, a Gunter resident, dropped the doe no more than 30 yards from his blind.

Season's greetings: It's stocking time
Texas Parks and Wildlife's popular winter trout stocking program begins next week with rainbows released into park lakes in Duncanville and Hurst. When stockings are completed in early spring, nearly 270,000 rainbow trout will have been stocked in almost 100 sites all across Texas.

11/18/2007

Dallas Stars are shooting for renewed relevance

JOHN F. RHODES / DMN

Although the announced attendance for Friday's game against Colorado was 18,019 at American Airlines Center, more patches of empty seats are being seen at Dallas Stars games these days.

Analysis: The signs of slippage are all around the Stars. Just look at the empty seats at American Airlines Center. And that's one of the main reasons Dallas Stars owner Tom Hicks shook up the organization this week by replacing general manager Doug Armstrong and president Jim Lites with new/old blood. "These are good people who did a very good job in getting the Stars to an elite level," Hicks said. "But sometimes you just need a change. We needed a change."
 Blog: Dallas Stars

11/17/2007

Ex-Dallas Cowboy a hero indeed

DMN file photo

Dick Nolan (standing), who helped Tom Landry implement the 'Flex' defense, had two coaching stints with the Cowboys. He was later head coach of the 49ers and Saints. His second son, Mike, is now the 49ers coach.

As a hard-hitting safety for the Giants, Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys in the '50s and early '60s, Dick Nolan drew notice from teammates for two traits: skinny calves and a big brain, writes DMN's Kevin Sherrington in his weekly "Sunday Brunch" column. Smart, dignified, taciturn, Nolan was in many ways a mirror image of his old teammate, friend and boss, Tom Landry.

Dallas Cowboys' quarterback position is rock solid

MICHAEL HOGUE / DMN Illustration

A Dallas Cowboys-type Mount Rushmore of (left to right) Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman, Don Meredith and Tony Romo. The four could signify the franchise QBs in team history.

Dallas Cowboys fans should fall to their knees, bow their heads and make a sacrifice of chips and salsa to the football gods each Sunday morning because all indications are Tony Romo will become the fourth franchise quarterback in the club's 48-year history, succeeding Don Meredith, Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman, writes DMN columnist Jean-Jacques Taylor.
 Blog: Dallas Cowboys

Ducks, harsh conditions in abundance 

RAY SASSER / DMN

Panhandle hunting guide Mark Meissenburg uses a layout boat to stage a low profile to ducks on a featureless playa lake.

The sound of wings accompanied by the splashes and startled quacks of ducks leaving the shallow playa lake seemed as loud in the pitch dark as a passing freight train, writes DMN outdoors columnist Ray Sasser. "How many ducks do you think are using this lake," I asked my guide, Mark Meissenburg. "No fewer than 5,000 and no more than 8,000," he said. "Nobody has hunted on this playa and there's still plenty of water here. Some of the other playas are drying up fast."
 Video: Sandhill crane hunting in Texas