The Pros & Cons of Becoming a College Athlete

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College athletes belong to a special category of students. They are followed and admired by many people. Girls and boys who play in college teams are extremely popular in college. It seems that nothing can darken the taste of fame. However, like any other thing, being a college athlete has its virtues and downsides. Let’s see what they are exactly. 

The perks of being an athlete in college

They are obvious, actually. Lots of students do not want to play sports in college because they believe it affects their studies badly. In some way, they are right, of course. However, now, you can always use a fax app or other ways of communication to be in touch with other students, as well as your professors. Just Fax from iPhone your coursework or essay or whatever you may need to share with your tutor. It saves plenty of time and helps you study to the fullest while playing sports. 

All modern students wonder how to fax from an iPhone because it really helps them in their studying process. If you are concerned about your academic progress while playing sports, it’s enough to just fax via iPhone whenever you may need it. Athletes are often competing in other cities and have no time to submit their papers and homework. Faxing is the latest technology that solves that problem. 

No, for doing that, you don’t need to go home or to somebody’s office anymore. Just take a photo of your coursework or another paper and fax via iPhone directly to your professor. Of course, you will need to agree about such faxing communication in advance with your tutors. This technology will save a lot of time and nerves for you both. Now, let’s see the real perks of being an athlete on your college team. 

  • A chance to become a part of big sports

Recruiters of various famous teams are constantly looking for good athletes in colleges. They observe all school and college competitions to select the most successful players. No matter whether you are playing football, basketball, or prefer swimming, a college team can be a great start for big sports. If you wonder how to become a college athlete, the answer would be to just go for it. 

Being recruited to a great sports team is a very good chance. However, it requires a lot of hard work and effort. Simple wishes and talent are not enough at all. Therefore, if you plan to enter sports for a long time and become a well-paid popular athlete in the future, be prepared to work for it. 

  • Fame

All boys and girls crave college athletes and there is no secret to it. When you are a team leader and a successful player on your college team, you know that you will be one of the most popular boys or girls in college. Everyone will talk about you and want to be your friend. Constant fame and attention are integral parts of every college athlete’s life. Therefore, the best way to gain girls’ attention for any guy in college is to play sports. You have a chance to date the most beautiful cheerleaders ever. 

  • Professors’ indulgences

Athletes do not have a lot of time to devote to their studies. It won’t be possible to combine being a diligent student and the best athlete in your college. You need to set priorities. Either you’re the most successful student or the best sportsman. There is no other option. However, it does not mean you cannot study well while playing sports. Professors respect people who work hard to make their college famous.

While being an athlete, you can always count on indulgences from professors. They will be patient with your delays and always try to give you better grades than you may deserve. This is one of the best sides of playing sports in college successfully. Of course, it works only when you are a successful player who upholds the honor of the college well.

The downsides of playing sports in college

Being a college athlete is undeniably great. It opens plenty of opportunities you could never see without it. However, there are a few shortcomings of such a path. Here they are. 

  • It affects your academic success

Playing sports almost professionally doesn’t improve your academic success but vice versa. You miss some lectures and lessons, do not submit homework on time, and fail to do many things other students manage to do. You cannot be a great student and a great sports player simultaneously. 

Therefore, if you plan to kill two birds with one stone, forget about it. Put up with lower academic results when being a great college athlete. However, you can always recall how to fax from iPhone to catch up with the program and be in touch with your professor whenever it is necessary. 

  • Health issues

Plenty of sports are tough. You are almost a professional player who works hard, trains every single day, and doesn’t have a lot of rest. Sometimes, you are deprived of those casual things other students enjoy every day. Traumas are frequent when it comes to sports, so be prepared for that. Sports make you healthier but they also may cause some health issues. 

Being an athlete in college is very popular and has both benefits and drawbacks. It is up to you which path to choose. 

 

Fantasy Football: Injuries Plaguing Your Season?

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Notable injuries in the NFL this week that may affect your fantasy football team:

Amon-Ra St. Brown: 

Detroit Lions Wide Receiver St. Brown left Sunday’s game early with a concussion. He may be out next week, but should be expected to be back at full speed within a week or two. We have seen his potential flash many times from last season into this season, and he was noted as “This seasons Cooper Kupp” at the start of the NFL season. Due to him being injured for a majority of this season, his owner may be lower on him. Mark this as a buy low opportunity and a possible league winner if healthy.

 

Mike Williams: 

Los Angeles Chargers Wide Receiver Williams left Sunday’s game early with a high ankle sprain. He is reportedly expected to miss 3-4 weeks. While this injury hurts Quarterback, Justin Herbert’s value, this skyrockets Wide Receiver, Keenan Allen’s value. While Allen was out, we saw Williams rack up 485 yards, and 3 touchdowns. Expect Allen to see a near similar jump in production with Williams out.

 

DK Metcalf: 

Seattle Seahawks Wide Receiver Metcalf left Sunday’s game with an injury to his patellar tendon. The good news? He won’t need surgery. The bad news? There is no know timetable for his recovery. My advice for now is to stash him on your injury reserve. He is a tough guy, and will most likely be back this season, but don’t bank on it. Expect Wide Receiver Tyler Lockett to skyrocket in value similarly to Keen Allen.

 

Breece Hall:

We had to get to this one at some point… The injury everyone is dreading the most has to be New York Jets running back Breece Hall. Hall tour his ACL, ruling him out for the season after starting off as the RB6 in his rookie season. This one hurts many owners, including myself. Running Back Michael Carter, on the other hand, is now the lead back in this Jets offense. He may not be Breece Hall, but he can easily start as a flex option on almost any team.

Other notable buy low candidates not mentioned in the injury reports include:

Deebo Samuel

Christian McCaffrey

Michael Pittman Jr.

Leonard Fournette

Mark Andrews

D’Andre Swift

Ceedee Lamb

Brian Robinson

The 5 Best NBA Games Of Last Decade

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Watching historical games in the NBA is always inspirational and thrilling. However, some of them are left in our minds forever while others are forgotten at once. Which of the NBA games are worth re-watching over again and which of them are better to forget? Below, we have created a selection of the best matches of last decade that you’d better watch if you still haven’t. If you have though, they are definitely worth watching them multiple times. 

Unfortunately, not all of those games are available for your geo-location. This is the biggest problem for many fans. No worries, thanks to VPN servers, you can forget about it and enjoy your favorite competitions no matter where you are or where you go. A reliable VeePN extension will unlock any streaming platform and allow you to enjoy whatever you wish. Use a free trial to unlock the best matches of the decade, as well as to access all coming shows. 

A VPN hides your IP address and connects you to the necessary server. You can use a  VPN in Singapore or any other location you need. A free trial will help you not only connect to the required server and enjoy the content that is blocked in your country but also protect your privacy by not letting any third parties track your IP address and access your personal data. If you are going to watch some of the following best games of the decade, using a VPN in Singapore is a must. Enjoy your favorite games and players to the fullest!

  • Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, 2013

The sixth NBA Finals have seen everything in 2013. This was one of the most incredible finals in the history of basketball. The game is one of the worthiest ever. Plenty of historical moments accompanied that game. Gregg Popovich decided to pull Tim Duncan off the floor. Ray Allen and Chris Bosh changed history forever with their shot behind the three-point line. This was a pure masterpiece that could never be outperformed by any other player. 

  • Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Game 7, 2016 NBA Finals

The game entered history as one of the best NBA games ever. The Warriors finished the regular season with 73-9 which became the best season record in NBA history. In the finals, they were leading 3:1 before the fifth game started. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving made their team come back remarkably at 3-3. 

With 1:52 left in the fourth quarter, the score was tied at 89 points, and Andre Iguodala had a chance to give the Warriors a two-point lead with a seemingly easy shot. LeBron James came out of the blue to block the shot and give the Cavs the required possession. Kyrie Irving hit a crucial three-pointer, giving the Cavs a three-point lead.

  • San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors, 2013

The game was really history-changing. The Spurs won the game and the series – Manu forever! – but it was the Warriors’ starting point, an adrenaline rush in double overtime that turned Curry and Clay Thompson’s expectations upside down. 

  • Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, Game 2, 2011 NBA Finals

The Miami Heat hardly expected to win the championship in 2011, as LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined the team early in the season to play with Dwyane Wade. Despite a slow start to the season, they eventually got used to each other’s style of play and reached the NBA Finals in their first season together. 

With 7:14 left in the fourth quarter, the Heat won 88-73, 15 points into the second game, and it looked like it would be a blowout win. After that, the determined Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry took charge and led the Mavericks to an incredible comeback, and they ended up winning the game 95-93.

  • Denver Nuggets, Portland Trail Blazers, 2019

A few days before Game 4, the Nuggets’ must-win, which was the peak of Jamal Murray’s career, was Game 3. Nikola Jokic (33 points, 18 rebounds, and 14 assists in 65 minutes!), Murray (34 points in 55 minutes!), C.J. McCollum (41 points in 60 minutes!) and, last but not least, Rodney Hood, who had ice water running all over his body during the final overtime. The crazy thing about this game is that it probably would have gone to five overtime if Jokic hadn’t missed free throws with 5.6 seconds to go. Either way, it’s a classic.

Conclusion

History has seen plenty of the greatest basketball matches. The last decade was especially rich for masterpieces. On the list above, you can enjoy the most incredible matches that turned basketball upside down. Even the biggest fans have not expected such an outcome. Remember that to enjoy your most anticipated games, it is necessary to use a good VPN extension or app. Then, regardless of your location, you can watch all streaming platforms and your favorite teams and players. 

 

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Raptors

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The Miami Heat fall to the Toronto Raptors this time around, after some back and forth late.

Heat now 1-3.

Some takeaways from this one…

#1: A look into an interchangeable defensive system for Miami.

As the Miami Heat trailed 48-43 at half, it always gives you a moment of reflection as to what the primary issue is. Both ends of the floor had problems in prior games, but the defensive end seemed to be cleaned up generally early in this one. From a positive perspective, I thought we finally got the defensive mix that you would be looking for with this Heat group. The first few possessions included some Bam Adebayo in drop, which I’ve been asking for. It then altered back to the soft switching, while shading help over for double teams more often than not. Following those sequences, Miami leaned into the 2-2-1 press and 2-3 zone when Gabe Vincent and Haywood Highsmith were at the top of it. The point is that Miami’s defense was problematic when it was one dimensional. Being creative and unpredictable is all you can ask for.

#2: The Dewayne Dedmon element.

While we imagined Bam Adebayo would be gunning for the DPOY award this year, I didn’t think Dewayne Dedmon would be given any credit for that. But when you open up the on/off numbers, or simply the plus/minus, the Dedmon stuff jumps off the page. But even more-so, it jumps off the game-tape when watching. He can’t truly move at this stage, which creates problems for this team on both ends. He doesn’t have the back-pedaling quickness to fully contain in drop, while his offensive role is just to simply “float” after a screen. Not much intention, not many positive outcomes. Simply, the minutes have looked bad to begin this season, and the status of Omer Yurtseven on the injury report becomes more and more intriguing.

#3: The Heat aren’t being quiet about the offensive combo that works best.

Something I’ve been discussing all off-season for Miami, when projecting the starting lineup on the season, was the Tyler Herro-Bam Adebayo pick and roll connection. And well, it’s lived up to the hype early in the season. Herro has recorded 1.47 points per possession on 61% shooting as the PnR ball handler, which only ranks behind Luka Doncic and Jaylen Brown. Adebayo has recorded 1.25 PPP on 68% shooting as the PnR roll man, only ranking behind John Collins. But the bigger headliner is that they aren’t afraid to lean into it. Heavily. The entire offense seems to be operating around that two-man action, and we’re seeing minor layers added to it and it’s only game 4. One of the more fun X’s and O’s story-lines to follow for this team.

#4: A very great Jimmy Butler approach.

As the Heat made a solid third quarter push, it required us to zoom out a bit. Bam Adebayo with some highlight-type strong attacks. Tyler Herro continues to be the shining piece. Yet Jimmy Butler was just quietly coasting to having a pretty great game. Trips to the line, a couple triples, mismatch hunting, solid facilitating, and great efficiency. We know what the role of Butler in the regular season looks like compared to the playoffs, but this is a great example of him not having to do *too* much while still putting up numbers. Combining my last takeaway with this one, a specific Herro-Bam PnR stood out late in the first half. Butler set-up at dunker spot for interior gravity, while he roams from box to box. Herro hit Butler who knocked down the floater. The shot profile mix is a healthy one.

#5: Late-game execution.

Jimmy Butler walks to the scorer’s table of a close game with 5 minutes left in the 4th. A bit of a back and forth pursued with some forced offense from Miami. A perfectly executed Spain PnR turned South late as Bam took off too early and it clanked off the rim. Raptors started to get some easy buckets down low, seemingly putting Miami in an awkward position with Butler entering with 3 mins left in the quarter. Fast forwarding a minute of a 6 point game, the Heat force a miss and run into transition. Tyler Herro, in Herro fashion, pulls up for three on the break to cut the lead to 3. All of a sudden the ball ends up back in their hands with a little over a minute to go, and we get another Spain PnR siting. Perfect result with VanVleet switching onto Bam, yet Herro shoots a tough shot that just misses. On the other end, Vincent did his best to contain, but Siakam got to his sweet spot for the mid-range bucket. 5 point game. Good play-call out of the timeout for Butler to drive on a curl screen for the easy lay-in. Yet as good of defense they played on Toronto following that play, Gary Trent just hits an insanely tough shot in the deep corner. Ends in a loss for Miami.

Why BTC Casinos Are Latest Trend In Canadian Gambling Industry

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Now that cryptos are taking over online transactions, most regulated online casinos consider cryptocurrency gambling options necessary. However, when it comes to crypto gambling sites, Canadians have a plethora of unique possibilities.

 

The rise of crypto gambling sites is one of the primary causes for the current increase of customers in the gambling business. Nevertheless, there has never been a more practical and secure way to engage in intriguing gaming activities than there is now. This innovation is a direct result of significant technological advancements and the willingness of the most reliable online casinos to adapt.

 

Furthermore, using a BTC casino offers quick transactions and great bonus promotions. In this article, we’ll discuss the variables making these cryptocurrency gambling sites popular with online bookmakers and how gamers like you may become involved.

Why Should You Gamble With Bitcoin?

 

In the world of online BTC gambling, there are several deposit possibilities. Depending on the mobile bookmaker, punters can finance an account using a bank transfer, credit card, e-wallet, prepaid card, or wire.

 

Cryptocurrency is becoming a more common deposit method (BTC). It has increased in popularity in the online gambling industry in recent years. First and foremost, with so many financial options available, you may be questioning why you even need Bitcoin. You may learn about the benefits of using cryptocurrency for Canadian online gambling and why BTC casinos are the newest trend in the Canadian gaming industry.

Low Payout Fees

 

Some banking options have exorbitant expenses that can wipe away your funds. For example, if you use Neteller to withdraw money, the platform will charge around 3% of the cashout amount. They are far worse because wire firms charge $35 for every withdrawal.

 

However, even cryptocurrency has certain costs. First, you must pay a little charge to the miner who processes your transaction. The key term here, though, is little. You usually pay 1% or less of the total value of the money exchanged. So if you withdraw $300 in Bitcoin, the costs will most likely be $3 or less.

Rapid Withdrawals

 

The banking option selected will decide the cashout time. For example, E-wallet withdrawals typically take 24 hours or less before completing your transactions. Furthermore, some bank transfers could take more than seven days before completion.

 

Nevertheless, BTC cashouts are often accessible sooner than most conventional banking operations. You will then receive your money within one to three working days. However, there isn’t a long waiting period before obtaining BTC incentives. 

Extra Benefits

 

The platform ensures coverage of minor changes such as deposit transaction fees. For example, they may reimburse the 3.5% Visa fee if you use a credit card. As a result, decreased crypto fees may help BTC gambling sites. In addition, they offer a variety of incentives to urge you to use this coin as much as possible.

 

Deposit bonuses are available at mobile casinos that only accept Bitcoin. For example, they may provide a 100% match bonus of up to 0.01 BTC. If you want to put in crypto gambles, check out the promotions section of your favorite BTC sportsbook. Additionally, several BTC bonuses may be available. 

Anonymity at a High Level

 

Depending on your personal preferences, you may not want online gambling transactions to appear on your credit card or e-wallet statements. Punters may find it difficult to obtain credit if anyone shares their information with outsiders.

 

In contrast to traditional banking, BTC provides far greater privacy. The platform will identify users through the use of wallet addresses. As a result, no one knows about your deposits or withdrawals from the online casino. BTC payments to and from anonymous addresses can only be seen by those who check them.

Easy Processing of Deposits

 

Some online gamblers shun cryptocurrency because they do not want to put up the effort of learning a new platform. However, they have no reservations about accepting widely accepted payment methods such as credit cards or e-wallets.

 

However, if you get the hang of it, using BTC isn’t much more complicated than using an e-wallet. This opportunity is especially true when punters consider how simple processes like Coinbase and Gemini make trading.

 

Create an account and use an exchange to begin learning how to use cryptocurrency. You then enter your banking information and send money to the business. After that, you can purchase BTC. Then you follow the simple instructions to send cryptocurrency to the required online gambling sites. You should consider building a wallet if you use the exchange primarily to send and receive cryptocurrency from a gambling website.

Wide Variety of Platform Options

 

Unregulated online gambling companies are increasingly using Bitcoin. Moreover, Peer-to-peer networks appeal to them because they allow them to communicate directly with clients. As a result, there are various cryptocurrency gambling sites. If you’re comfortable utilizing Bitcoin, you’ll have many more alternatives when finding a gambling site.

 

Some countries have substantial banking restrictions that make depositing money for gambling difficult. For example, living in certain Canadian provinces, you may find it challenging to place real money gambles. Once again, there is no connection between cryptocurrency and banks or third parties. As a result, you shouldn’t be concerned that laws will regulate BTC. 

Conclusion

 

The fundamental goals of cryptocurrency gambling platforms are entertainment and financial gain. But it would help if you did not second-guess how you make deposits and withdrawals. Gambling sites that accept BTC solve this problem, as BTC makes it straightforward to transfer money to and from gambling sites.

 

Moreover, it provides a peer-to-peer network in which miners support transactions rather than outside intermediaries. It also offers reasonable transaction speeds and low fees. If you’ve ever had difficulties making deposits with credit cards, e-wallets, and the costs that come with them, look into BTC gambling sites.

 

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Raptors

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So the Heat bounced back on the second night of a back to back against the Toronto Raptors, getting a much needed win to begin the season.

This game wasn’t a very normal or consistent one, since while they were clicking on all cylinders in the first half, it tailed off and ended up being a close game.

Either way, here are some takeaways of both the good and the bad…

#1: The return of the offensive movement.

A question I posed exactly 24 hours ago was a rather simple one: where is the movement? Two-man actions were being run for this Heat offense against Boston, but not many more layers added on. Tonight, though, they showcased a total flip in that nature through the first 24 minutes of basketball. The first element of movement simply involves the ball. When things got stale, it was because isolations were most of the time the end result. This time around we saw a good amount of extra passes and necessary swings to keep the defense honest. The second element of Miami’s movement regards just bodies roaming. Off-ball screening, simple back-cuts, and perimeter hand-off searching is the engine to positive half-court offense. It was obviously the primary intention heading in, and they responded with a 71 point first half.

#2: Max Strus: doing the *other* things more consistently.

We know what Max Strus is at this stage. He’s a guy who fits next to anybody, and can shoot the heck out of the ball no matter the contest. But while watching this game tonight, I’m sure some other stuff caught your eye. Step 1 included his weak-side defense and timing. I’m not going to sit here and act like the Heat’s defensive rotations were where they want them to be, but Strus showcased incredible help timing to muck up straight line drives and account for some charges. The other main part of his performance ties back to my previous takeaway of movement and cutting. He’s just hard to continually account for. Guys find him around the rim a ton since he’s not a standstill threat. Keys to staying on the floor late in games.

#3: Kyle Lowry the off-ball threat/Tyler Herro the rim threat.

When zooming out career wise, we know Tyler Herro as a high level outside shooter or developed into an elite off the dribble scoring threat. We also know Kyle Lowry as a consistent creator both for himself and others, while always mixing in elite efficiency numbers as a spot-up threat. But sometimes the simple and original read of a player finds it’s way more consistently again. That was one of my primary takeaways tonight, as Herro pretty much continues to soar as a true rim pressure threat. He’s slashing on the ball in ways that make it so much tougher to guard within that two-man action. Lowry, on the other hand, was definitely going to be getting extra off-ball reps with the amount of creators on this roster. But 3 for 3 in the first half on spot-up triples proves this theory to be correct. Catch and shoot Lowry combined with relentless attacking Herro is a formula for very good offense.

#4: Caleb Martin with an ejection…and a lifetime Heat contract?

So things picked up a bit in the third quarter as Miami possessed a pretty comfortable lead. Some emotions were rising as Tyler Herro and Paschal Siakam got tied up a bit after the play. A few minutes later, *the* play happened. What seemed like a usual foul down low turned into a linebacker shooting the gap of the o-line. Caleb Martin stood over the top of Christian Koloko, leading into a body slam takedown into the courtside seats on the baseline. Both players ended up being ejected, but it was an interesting twist to this game. Martin may have gotten thrown out of this one, but he simultaneously may have been thrown a lifetime Heat contract after that display of emotion and toughness. Well, for the moment. It ended up being pivotal in terms of the Raptors storming back in the second half, but Miami pulled it out.

#5: I’m still watching the turnovers.

A consistent theme across all 3 games of Heat basketball this season has been turnovers. They actually forced Boston into double their number last night, but they’re still putting up a pretty uncomfortable number. Some of that is fine if it’s occurring through an offensive process of risk taking in the half court, but I don’t truly feel that’s been the case. Many of them are just playing at a different speed than the next guy, or forcing stuff that is so clearly not there for them. If this team ends up in the bottom 10 in pace again, which will be the case, a high turnover outcome can’t be the result on a nightly basis.

2022 Senior Bowl midseason all riser team

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The Senior Bowl just released it’s 2022 midseason all riser team. It consists of offensive and defensive players that have risen two rounds or more on the Senior Bowl board from their Junior year tape grades.

Lets take a look at the offensive prospects.

Quarterback Hendon Hooker

The Tennessee quarterback is kind of like a mix between Young and Stroud physically. He has Stroud’s arm and size and Young’s athleticism and accuracy. He may win the Heisman. The only major flaw about Hendon Hooker is his age. It brings with it questions of how much upside is left?

Running back Chase Brown

The Illini product has the ability to see where holes are going to open up. Brown can twist his hips in between the blockers to squeeze through holes that aren’t there to the naked eye.

He’s capable as a receiver, a weapon on swing passes and in the screen game. His stats through seven games:

  • ATT: 192
  • YDS: 1,059
  • TD: 4
  • AVG: 5.5

All-riser Pass Catchers

Tight End Luke Schoonmaker

Senior Luke Schoonmaker has picked up where Michgan TE Erick All left off last year, becoming a key part of the Wolverines’ passing attack and a favorite target of J.J. McCarthy.

Through six games, the 6-foot-6, 250-pound tight end is second on the team in catches (23) and receiving yards (229). Schoonmaker has reliable hands and shows the willingness to make catches in traffic over the middle.

Wide Receiver Zay Flowers

Xavien “Zay” Kevonn Flowers has caught my eye for a while now and he’s been on the senior bowl radar for quite some time. The Eagles product is first or tied for first in the ACC in:

  • Targets (63)
  • Receptions (42)
  • Receiving yards (556)
  • Receiving TDs (5)
  • 40+ yard catches (4)

His stock hasn’t only rose in the senior bowl board, but also among NFL boards.

“He’s a smaller receiver, like a [Terry] McLaurin, that type of guy. He can fly. He’s a highlight reel. Probably a second-rounder, might sneak in first if he runs real fast [at the combine].”

NFC Scouting Director

Wide Receiver Charlie Jones

Purdue receiver Charlie Jones is coming of age, especially on the mid-season all riser team for the Senior Bowl. Although Jones is more of a possession target than a field stretcher, his fiercely competitive demeanor and run-after-catch ability make him a major threat in the middle of the field.

His play this season is even more impressive when you consider he had 39 career receptions coming into the year. Jones has become the most reliable target for Aidan O’Connell and consistently comes away with the difficult catch during the game’s critical moments. He has 62 catches for 735 yards and 9 touchdowns.

Wide Receiver Jonathan Mingo

Ole Miss Rebels receiver Jonathan Mingo was graded by Pro Football Focus as the No. 1 wideout in College Football. Mingo plays with a smoothness and balance, and Mingo shows a knack for setting up defensive backs. He’s equally dangerous in catch-and-run situations as he is taking the top off a defense.

Mingo transitions quickly from receiver to runner, and he has enough speed to threaten the seam and has a knack for getting open. Through six games, Mingo has amassed 22 receptions, 507 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. He is also now averaging 23.0 yards per reception, which is good for first in the SEC and second in the nation.

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All-riser Offensive Lineman

Offensive Tackle Tyler Steen

The development of Alabama offensive tackle Tyler Steen, a veteran transfer from Vanderbilt, has been critical for the Crimson Tide.

Through six weeks, he has been an anchor for the Crimson Tide at left tackle. He is a very instinctive player and leads by example along the offensive front. It will be interesting to see how he develops as the season progresses.

Offensive Guard O’Cyrus Torrence

Proving himself as Florida’s most impactful addition from the transfer portal this past offseason, Right guard O’Cyrus Torrence was recognized for his play twice through six games with the Gators as he lands on Associated Press Midseason All-American team and 2022 Reese’s Senior Bowl Midseason All-Riser Team.

Torrence does a nice job working with teammates to build the pocket, anchoring against bull rushers and displaying good awareness against stunts and twists. As a result, he’s continued his college career-long streak of games without giving up a sack, up to 42 games between his three years at Louisiana and six appearances at Florida.

Center Alex Forsyth

The Oregon product is little known outside of the college football community but has slowly risen up the ranks. Forsyth is currently on the mid-season watchlist for the Lombardi Award. In the run game, he shows good burst off the line of scrimmage, with the ability to win at the point of attack.

Forsyth has enough speed and athleticism to move to the second level and land blocks. He’s a rock in the middle of the line as a pass protector, with the heavy hands and strong grip to hold his own against bigger defensive tackles.

Offensive Guard Matthew Jones

Matthew Jones’ name has not been a hot name recently as Ohio State’s high powered offense has names like C.J. Stroud, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Paris Johnson. However, Matthew Jones is a key contributor to keeping C.J. Stroud upright and have one of the best run games in the nation.

Jones consistently lands blocks at the second level, and Jones finishes strong. As a pass protector, he has violent, heavy hands. Along with a strong initial punch, he has the hand strength to grip and redirect pass rushers.

Offensive Tackle Darnell Wright

Last week Volunteers offensive lineman Darnell Wright stood out against Alabama. He had the task playing against an impressive EDGE rusher in Will Anderson Jr.

***This article was originally published on the ATB Network by Hussam Patel***

 

Hussam Patel is a Miami Dolphins contributor and Lead NFL Draft analyst at Five Reasons Sports Network, Director of Scouting at PhinManiacs and Editor at Dolphins ATB. Follow him on Twitter at @HussamPatel

Five takeaways from Panthers 3-2 OT loss to Lightning

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SUNRISE – The Battle of Florida returned on Friday night as the cross-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning made the journey to Sunrise to face off against the Florida Panthers.

 

These two teams have a lot of history over the last two seasons and tonight some new faces became acquainted with this fierce rivalry. 

 

Tampa came out the victors of this matchup, defeating Florida 3-2 in overtime off a Brayden Point power play goal.

 

Here’s tonight’s takeaways:

 

Matthew Tkachuk 

Matthew Tkachuk definitely had this one circled on his calendar. In his introductory press conference, he said, “I hate Edmonton, but I hate Tampa more now.” The former Calgary Flame is used to rivalries as he was a frequent noise maker in the Battle of Alberta.

 

In his first Battle of Florida, Tkachuk wasted no time stamping his name into the rivalry as he scored a tip-in off a Brandon Montour shot in the first period to tie the game at one a piece. This would be the first goal Tkachuk scored at home in a Panthers uniform.

 

Tkachuk got into the mix of it tonight with a few Lightning players, he even witnessed Corey Perry chuck his stick across the ice. Tkachuk was on the receiving end of some physicality too. He had two points tonight and continues to be the Panthers leading scorer.

 

Unfortunately for Tkachuk and the Panthers, he took two penalties in one play in the OT, granting Tampa a two-minute, 4-on-3 power play. As well as the Panthers PK did during regulation, going 5/6 on the kill before OT, Tampa didn’t let the extra frame head back to even-strength with Brayden Point beating Bobrovsky to win the game.

 

Rudy continues his goal streak

Rudolfs Balcers introduced himself to the Florida faithful on Wednesday night at the home opener when he scored his first goal with the Panthers against Philadelphia.

 

Tonight, Rudy extended his goal streak to two games with a huge goal in front of Andrei Vasilevskiy’s goal to give Florida the lead.

 

In his first year with the team, Balcers has played well alongside Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett on the second line. 

 

After playing a career-high 61 games last season in San Jose, Balcers doesn’t look out of place in Florida’s top-six. 

 

Florida puts up shots, a lot of shots

Similar to last season’s team, this Panthers squad pushes the tempo in transition and picks up a ton of shots as a result. 

 

Over the last three games, Florida had at least 30 shots on goal. Tonight they continued that streak, hitting it before the third period puck-drop.

 

A big question around the league after the hiring of Paul Maurice was if Florida could sustain the high-octane offense they had the previous season under Andrew Brunette. 

 

Tonight was just another demonstration of the amount of chances Florida generates throughout the game. 

 

They ended the game with 38. 

 

A healthy Brandon Montour is big for Florida

Florida’s defense is already without their top defenseman in Aaron Ekblad for an extended period of time as he’s on LTIR. Prior to tonight, they were also without Brandon Montour for the last two games.

Florida was able to get Montour’s services back tonight and it was much needed. The 28-year-old had the most ice-time for the d-corps, clocking in just over 23 minutes.

 

Montour also picked up points on both of Florida’s goals tonight. He’s going to be relied on heavily this season, specifically during the absence of Ekblad. 

 

Montour didn’t play on the top power play unit tonight as he did to start the season, however he could be seeing time on that top unit again sooner than later. 

 

Too much time in the box

The Lightning power play has been a thorn to oppositions for years now and Florida is no stranger to this. Tampa’s first goal of the game was a power play one-timer from captain Steven Stamkos. Their last goal of the game was a powerplay goal from Brayden Point in OT.

 

The Lightning know how to work a power play. They waste no time moving the puck and use multiple players as bumpers, so the opposition has to respect all five guys on the ice. 

 

Florida’s PP did a good job at stopping Tampa’s PP onslaught in regulation after the Stamkos goal, but in these tight games, spending so much time in the box is a momentum killer for the most part and Florida looked like the better team 5-on-5.

 

Tampa retaining control on their 4-on-3 overtime PP gave them way too much open ice in the zone and it ended with Florida only picking up one point from this game.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Celtics

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So we got an Eastern Conference Finals rematch on Friday night, immediately following a tough opening night performance for the Miami Heat.

Consistency felt like one of the main issues in this one, since even though the offense or defense was there at times, they just couldn’t sustain it long enough.

Even after making a late push, it wasn’t enough to steal a win against this gritty and skilled Celtics team. So here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: Tyler Herro: flattened offense to rim attempts to a fully open shot diet.

For scorers like Tyler Herro, the start of games hold high importance. It may sound wild, but he’s a rhythm player who needs to find his way a bit before truly popping. But that wasn’t the case early in this game. The Celtics were really flattening out the expected pick and rolls to come with Bam Adebayo, leaving Herro in a weird spot offensively. Then a few minutes into the second quarter, he found his way. Herro began getting to the rim a bunch, which is the true cursor to fully opening up his entire shot menu. That led into the free throw line floater opening up. Then the three-point shooting. Then the play-making. It’s a domino effect for Herro, but the ability to get out of the mud a bit at the start of games is a good sign.

#2: Bam Adebayo comes out aggressive…again. Just with different result.

After Bam Adebayo struggled on opening night against the Chicago Bulls, the topic about his scoring ability wasn’t the usual headliner: aggression. He was definitely getting shots up, they just weren’t dropping, which tends to happen. But the process was there. That stayed strong early in this game against Boston, as he wasn’t afraid to dive into the shots that Boston was giving him, which pretty much began and finished with the mid-range pull-up. Those jumpers led him to a 12 point first half stat line on 6 of 7 shooting. My point the other night was that inefficient nights for him will be fine throughout the season, as long as there’s a similar process along the way. Even though tonight had a bit of a different process with some early foul trouble.

#3: Where’s the movement?

In terms of the downside of Miami’s X’s and O’s, I must say I was expecting Miami to lean much more into their motion offense this year. They have multiple movement shooters on the floor together at times, a decent amount of on-ball creators, and a couple athletes. That roster construction screams nonstop movement, especially when linking that player grouping to the Miami Heat. But we’ve seen a lot of stagnant two-man actions early in this season, while the weak-side spacers are simply spotting up. Of course that can be the case depending on the action you’re running, but this team won’t be a successful scoring team off a bunch of isolations. I think they will find their identity here soon, but something to keep an eye on.

#4: The importance of the Kyle Lowry pull-up 3.

After talking about some of the minor negatives of the offense so far, it’s also important to talk some positives. And after a bad opening night for Kyle Lowry, he bounced back with some crucial buckets throughout. More specifically, it’s pretty clear that his pull-up triple changes the game for this team’s half-court offense. When he doesn’t take it, the defense goes under to flatten it, and it usually just ends up in a congested pass to the roller or resetting swing pass. Yet when he’s taking it, it puts more pressure on not only the on-ball defender, but the off-ball helpers. That’s the way to bend a good Celtics defense, and it’s with one single shot. It’ll be intriguing to monitor the efficiency and volume of it, but that’ what’ll make Lowry’s presence extremely helpful.

#5: A much needed defensive pick-up.

As I talked about the other night, Miami’s defensive rotations just weren’t there. This time around, it wasn’t as much the rotations. Instead it had many of us glued to their defensive layout. The Celtics are a heavy shot creation team, especially considering their molded around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. With that said, they enjoying picking their isolation matchup at any given moment. They were able to do that pretty easily at times with Miami’s switching, while yes it may have it’s perks with the randomized helps and doubles, just needs some type of mix-up against a team like Boston. The thing I’ve been advocating for is a mix of drop once in a while with Bam Adebayo on the floor. Maybe that says something about the point of attack defense in that first unit, but some defensive creativity and unpredictability is needed for this group with 80 games to go.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Bulls

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The Miami Heat faced the Chicago Bulls in their season opener, and well, it didn’t go as expected.

They came out playing well out the gate, but that stalled quickly. The defensive lapses began to add up, as DeMar DeRozan continued to “heat” up.

So, here are some takeaways…

#1: Tyler Herro kicks off his new role with a scoring punch…with a changing profile.

There was no doubt that Tyler Herro would be a focal point of the starting group’s offensive flow, but his usage was peaking to an even further degree early. An immediate pull-up three to kick things off will always be a good sign, but the next possession spoke volume. Herro pick and roll, Chicago Bulls blitz. He showed patience, waited it out, flowed downhill, snaked insane, and put up the floater. Bucket. Shortly after, as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo created, the ball ended up swinging to Herro in the corner for a spot-up three. The point is that his shot profile looks much different, while simultaneously looking much better. Pull-ups, spot-ups, blitzes: you know the deal. He’s just confident against all of it to start the season off.

#2: The rotation at the moment…

The starting lineup wasn’t much of a surprise heading in, (Lowry-Herro-Butler-Martin-Bam) but the questions were pointed at the bench unit without Victor Oladipo suiting up. Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, and Dewayne Dedmon were going to form the 8, but how would they regulate the rest? Well, the answer was quite simple. They went the Duncan Robinson route, and played him next to Strus for long stretches. Yet the key about the rotation is that they are matching good combinations. For example, they want to mirror the minutes of Herro and Bam as much as possible. So, they sub Butler out first, to then have him anchor the bench unit shortly after. It’s a solid philosophy to split up on-ball threats, but the next evaluation period will include how Butler and Oladipo look together once he returns.

#3: Caleb Martin isn’t PJ Tucker, and they won’t treat him like so.

Who will be the PJ Tucker replacement? That’s a question that has been asked all off-season, and the answer to that question has been Caleb Martin. Yes, he’s subbing into the position that he filled, but he’s not truly filling his role. Martin is surprising people with his growth at the moment, since he’s doing things that we’ve yet to see from him. Step 1 was the ability to size up defensively. Miami placed him on DeMar DeRozan early for the sole reason of predicting the switch, ending with him trying to hold his own on Nikola Vucevic. He had some good possessions early, but they continued to post him up a punch in the second half, proving the difference between PJ Tucker and himself. But the offensive stuff is a change of pace as well: rim pressure, tighter handle, better shooting, and constant movement. For an unexpected example. the dude literally ran a pick and roll for a tough mid-range pull-up early on. This is a different player right now, and there’s more to explore in my personal opinion.

#4: Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry struggling.

When looking at the stat sheet at halftime, two things would’ve caught you by surprise. Bam Adebayo was 1 for 10 from the field and Kyle Lowry had 0 points on two attempts. On the Bam front, he was just missing easy buckets at the rim time and time again. Bunnies, dunks, etc. I mean he was aggressive, but he didn’t have that usual focused flare from the jump. Lowry, on the other hand, wasn’t even looking for his shot. There weren’t many actions I can recall that he was heavily involved. Most of the offense included Bam or Jimmy post-splits, or Herro created buckets off pick and rolls or curls. I truly believe the Bam element is just one of those nights where easy ones don’t drop, but the Lowry part of it is about engagement level. Herro and Butler can only do so much to keep this group afloat. They’re going to need some type of punch on nights like this from Lowry and/or Bam.

#5: A step too slow defensively?

As the Bulls continued to pull away in the third quarter, there was a consistent theme: DeMar DeRozan tough buckets and sleepy Heat defensive possessions. This Heat team goes through shooting/scoring slumps all the time, but their energy and defensive rotations, specifically, usually carry them. That wasn’t the case for long periods in this one. Bulls were getting easy buckets at the rim and simple back-cuts were end results, which is far from a Miami Heat product. If there’s one thing this Heat team can’t afford to lose this season, it’s those crispy rotations on the defensive side of the ball night in and night out.