“U-17s to showcase new attacking philosophy in Nigeria - ESPN Soccernet” plus 4 more |
- U-17s to showcase new attacking philosophy in Nigeria - ESPN Soccernet
- Tufts Prof. To Join Philosophy Dept. - Harvard Crimson
- A Change in Sean Payton's Philosophy Key to Saints Offensive ... - Bleacherreport.com
- ShoBox Returns This Friday - 411mania.com
- Jordan principal honored with national award - KARE
| U-17s to showcase new attacking philosophy in Nigeria - ESPN Soccernet Posted: 20 Oct 2009 10:37 AM PDT ABUJA, NIGERIA -- To hear those involved with this year's U.S. U-17 national team, the squad ready to take the field at the FIFA 2009 U-17 World Cup in Nigeria may be about to launch a revolution of sorts in American soccer.  Courtesy of the Edwards family./Other U.S. U-17 star Earl Edwards has been touted as the next Tim Howard. While American youth teams -- in fact, American teams at just about all levels -- have traditionally been more likely to describe themselves as hard to play against or organized from the back, this young group seems to have little time for such mundane talk, preferring instead to attack in wave after wave and let the chips fall where they may. The impetus behind that radical shift in paradigm is Colombian coach Wilmer Cabrera, who took over the Bradenton Academy development program two years ago after a string of underperformances in U-17 World Cups that was capped by a disappointing round of 16 exit in Korea in 2007. That U.S. team lost to the likes of Tajikistan and Tunisia in the group stage. "He's really emphasized the attacking style," said Edwards, "especially within the last month or two, and it's something I think is really going to help our team." The coach, a long-time Colombian international who played in two World Cups in the '90s, has revitalized the unique American youth development program at Bradenton, molding a team that boasts more than the usual quota of top-tier prospects. "What I'm trying to do is get that confidence to the players," said Cabrera. "When you have a team that is working and they have the confidence they can play, they have to have the personality to play even, against any team. It's how I live, and how I feel about the game and my passion for the game. I give that freedom to the players to express themselves on the field with the ball, with a little bit of organization."
That aggressive style produced 12 goals in three games in the CONCACAF U-17 qualifying tournament in Tijuana back in May. The Americans never looked challenged in breezing past their group opponents, before the second round -- and a pending showdown with Mexico -- was cancelled by worries over the outbreak of swine flu. Despite missing that regional clash, Cabrera's squad has not been pressed for warm-up options, traveling to Europe and South America multiple times this year for friendly matches. The results have generally been positive, save one lopsided 5-1 loss at the hands of Argentina before the qualifying tournament. The team even took on the Kansas City Wizards of MLS last week, putting up staunch resistance before falling 3-0. "What I would like to do is to play against tougher teams -- faster, bigger, stronger -- some more mature teams in a professional environment," Cabrera said of the warm-up against the MLS pros. "We got exposed a little bit, but it doesn't matter the result, it's just all preparation. It's the level of the game that we need to be exposed to and the speed of the game that we need to get." In a sampling of its other preparation matches, Cabrera's team has battled Spain to a late loss in Madrid and twice defeated African champion Gambia last month in England, where the Americans also overcame Chelsea's U-18 team. Like previous U-17 teams, most of the team lives and plays together on a daily basis at the USSF facility in Bradenton, Fla. (they also take high school classes as part of the academy). The trips are a further bonding experience for a group whose members know one another well. "We've been together for two years, which is completely different from other teams," said defender Perry Kitchen. "Other guys are usually at professional teams doing different things and they usually gather a few weeks before the World Cup comes around. We've been playing together and seeing each other every day for about two years, so I think everybody knows everybody's strengths and weaknesses." Though it created the cohesion that is possibly the team's greatest strength, the residency approach has also taken a toll this group, as three noteworthy players who left residency earlier in the year will not feature at the World Cup. Former standouts Charles Renken, Joseph Gyau and Sebastian Lletget were all left off the final roster. Renken is still recovering from a serious knee injury suffered in the spring. Lletget (who trains with West Ham United's academy in England) and Gyau (who has been practicing with the USL's Vancouver Whitecaps) apparently were unable to reconcile their professional itineraries with the national team's preparatory schedule. "It's part of the game," Cabrera said. "You're always going to miss some players. It could be for injuries, some others because they're not ready, and some others simply because they don't want to come over here. It's part of the normal process, but I'm really happy with the team and with the group we have today." While the absence of three of this cycle's most talented players surely will be felt somewhere along the line in Nigeria, Cabrera still has a deep and talented pool of young players to choose from in attempting to improve on the Americans' best-ever fourth place finish at the U-17 World Cup. "I think we have a strong chance on improving on that," said Edwards, "and we're hoping to prove it to the rest of the world." Goalkeepers At a position of traditional strength for the U.S., starting goalkeeper Earl Edwards has the raw skills to become the next in a long line of quality shot-stoppers. His precocious size made basketball his first love. But now, at 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds, the Southern California native hopes to emulate Tim (not Dwight) Howard and become an international star on the pitch. "You hope you don't get beat," said defender Kitchen. "But if you do get beat, you feel confident with him back there in the net." Edwards is among the players who has blossomed the most during his two-year stint at Bradenton, and he is anxious to show his wares at the World Cup, with an eye toward landing a professional contract overseas. Rounding out the goalkeeping corps are Spencer Richey, an experienced backup from fabled Washington state youth club Crossfire Premier, and Keith Cardona of the New York Red Bulls Academy. Defenders Two years together at Bradenton have molded the defense into an increasingly cohesive unit. Twin towers Jared Watts and Eriq Zavaleta manned the middle for much of the qualifiers, intimidating smaller attackers and adding an aerial threat to the U.S. attack as well. Watts can also play in midfield, with Kitchen sliding into the center from the right-back position. Tyler Polak seems to have made the left-back spot his for a group that leads what Kitchen calls a team effort. "We have one job, and that's to keep the ball out of the net," said Kitchen. "I don't think it's necessarily just the back four and the goalie as the defenders. This team likes to defend as a unit and win the ball together." If this team has a large potential weakness that could be exposed in Nigeria, it may be a lack of pace in the back. The American defenders were largely unchallenged in qualifiers, but when faced with speedy attackers, especially down the middle of the field, the lanky American central defenders were sometimes caught a step behind. To help remedy that lack of foot speed against faster attacks, Cabrera may call on all-purpose defenders Boyd Okwuonu and Zachary Herold, who can play anywhere across the back line and bring a dose of athleticism to the table. Midfielders The attacking corps ranks among the deepest in memory for an American U-17 team, though the absences of Renken, Gyau and Lletget mean Cabrera will have fewer options in the midfield. Those absences have also simplified the midfield picture significantly, as Alex Shinsky and Nick Palodichuk look like firm starters on the flanks. The duo holds its own on offense and defense, solidifying the midfield, though they lack the spectacular attacking ability of those missing options. Cabrera hopes that offensive flair will come instead in the form of Carlos Martinez, who has been used as a late-game attacking option and could also see extensive time on the left of midfield. The central midfield pairing of Marlon Duran and Luis Gil has jelled over the past year, and they provide defensive toughness and attacking guile. At 5-foot-4, the diminutive Duran is a hard-nosed ball-winner in the mold of Chris Armas, while Gil, a playmaker who has been linked to Arsenal, has garnered as many plaudits as any of the team's other stars for his technical skill. Will Packwood is the only non-residency player who was willing to put in the time and effort ahead of the Cup to make this team; he attends the academy run by Birmingham City of the English Premier League. At 6-foot-3, Packwood serves as a wild card who brings an alternative look to the attack. Forwards The cream of the crop at forward is undoubtedly Georgia native Jack McInerney, who outshone his higher-profile teammates in Tijuana, leading the team with five goals -- most of them of the spectacular variety. McInerney has since trained in Holland and will be looking to make the permanent jump to Europe with a good showing at the World Cup. His strike partner is likely to be Stefan Jerome, another talented player of whom much is expected. Andrew Craven saw extended time in qualifiers, as well, competing with Gyau for the third forward spot. Having stepped up his game at a good time by coming on in recent friendlies, he is likely to feature even more prominently in Nigeria.
Reserves Victor Chavez, Juan Agudelo and Dominick Sarle have shown their own flashes and scored a number of goals when given a shot over the past few months, assuring that Cabrera will not be starved for attacking options, though he will have a task on his hands in choosing which to use in different situations. The embarrassment of offensive riches on display for this team makes Nigeria the potential forum for a U.S. coming-out party staged by a young squad playing attractive soccer centered on a high-powered attack. If the Americans can live up to their ambition as an aggressive, goal-getting juggernaut and perform under pressure -- which surely they will face along the way -- Cabrera and Co. could find themselves at the top of the heap in Africa come mid-November. Brent Latham covers U.S. soccer for ESPNsoccernet. Based in Dakar, Senegal, he also covers West Africa for Voice of America radio and can be reached at brentlatham@ymail.com. This content has passed through fivefilters.org. | |
| Tufts Prof. To Join Philosophy Dept. - Harvard Crimson Posted: 19 Oct 2009 10:56 PM PDT
Mark E. Richard—a tenured faculty member at Tufts University since 1984—has been named a professor of philosophy, effective July 1, 2010.
Richard specializes in the philosophy of language, philosophical logic, metaphysics, and epistemology. Department Chair Sean D. Kelly said that Richard will join a department that includes faculty engaged in similar research, including Philosophy Professors Warren Goldfarb '69, Bernhard Nickel, and Susanna Siegel. "We're expecting that Professor Richard will work together with others in the department, and in neighboring departments such as Linguistics, to bring Harvard to pre-eminence in philosophy of language," Kelly said. "For at least the past 50 years, philosophy of language has been at the center of English speaking philosophy." Philosophy Professor Edward J. Hall said that hiring Richard may attract more graduate students studying Richard's specialities to the school and could possibly expand the size of Harvard's philosophy department, which Hall added is one of the smaller departments in the nation. "His coming will make our department an even better place to forge ties with linguistics, which is something that Bernhard Nickel has already done," Hall said. "If you reach a critical number of people specializing in an area, prospective graduate students start to take notice." Richard is perhaps best known for his work on the semantical analysis of propositional-attitude ascriptions—phrases such as "hope that" and "believe that"—and their connection to theories of direct reference, which posit that the meaning of a noun or noun phrase is that which it picks out in the world. "Professor Richard is an original, rigorous, and creative scholar who has made important and impressive contributions to the philosophy of language," said FAS Divisional Dean for the Arts and Humanities Diana Sorensen in a press release yesterday. "His work ranks with the best being done in his field today." Given the University's current fiscal situation, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences has had to curb adding new faculty. Kelly said that even though it is "unusual" for academic departments to hire in this financial environment, he was "grateful" for the opportunity to bring Richard into the department. "This was a search that had been going on for quite some time, though we recognize [that] that doesn't distinguish it from some others that were canceled," he said. Richard is currently Lenore Stern Professor in the Humanities and Social Sciences at Tufts University. He received his B.A. from Hamilton College and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He is the author of three books, including his 2008 work entitled "When Truth Gives Out." —Staff writer Manning Ding can be reached at ding3@fas.harvard.edu This content has passed through fivefilters.org. | |
| A Change in Sean Payton's Philosophy Key to Saints Offensive ... - Bleacherreport.com Posted: 20 Oct 2009 04:53 AM PDT After two straight non-winning seasons, New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton knew he needed to try something different. Even though his offense led the league in total yards and points per game in 2008, it still had its share of shortcomings. The Saints were slow starters. They scored just 13.6 percent (63/463) of their points in the first quarter. Much of their yardage and points came only after trailing by multiple scores. Two games from 2008 really stand out to confirm this. The first one was a 34-32 loss to Denver. At first glance, you see that Drew Brees threw for over 400 yards. Dig deeper and you notice that the Saints trailed 21-3 in the second quarter and needed a furious comeback just to have a chance to win. The second game was a similar contest against Carolina. Again the Saints lose by just two points, this time 33-31. Brees throws for 386 yards and four touchdowns. Look closely, though, and you'll see that Brees needed 49 passes to accomplish this personal feat. The Saints trailed 23-3 in the second quarter before briefly taking a 31-30 lead late in the game. This is not to say that the Saints' offense wasn't good in 2008. It was. It just wasn't as good as some analysts will have you think.
Here's What's Changed Coach Payton has found that the key to a consistently good offense is balance in play calling. The Saints are running the ball more than they ever have under Sean Payton and it is paying off.
Pass/run ratio 2006: 56/44 (10-6) 2007: 63/37 (7-9) 2008: 62/38 (8-8) 2009: 48.7/51.3 (5-0 through six weeks)
Points per game 2006: 25.8 (Fifth in the NFL) 2007: 23.7 (10th) 2008: 28.9 (First) 2009: 38.4 (First - through six weeks)
One thing that I quickly noticed was that the Saints' offense was at its worst when they passed the ball the most often. New Orleans has scored 45, 48, 27, 24, and 48 points in five games this season. More importantly, the Saints are scoring early in games. The Saints have scored 25 percent (48/192) of their points in the first quarter, which is nearly double their output last year. Incredibly, the new pass/run ratio has helped Brees become an even better quarterback. He hasn't had to force any passes, and defenses now must respect the play-action fake and prepare for a running attack that's averaging about 160 yards per game. Even though he is on pace to throw for about 600 yards fewer than he did last year, he is on track to throw for more touchdowns and fewer interceptions than ever in New Orleans. 2009 projected stats: 4,480 yards, 42 touchdowns, and just six interceptions. When It All Changed Many observers and analysts seem to think coach Payton had his epiphany during the offseason when he tinkered with the idea of bringing in Edgerrin James before ultimately sticking with Pierre Thomas, Reggie Bush, Mike Bell, and Lynell Hamilton. I say they're wrong. I think the light switch went on near the end of last season. The 6-5 Saints headed into Tampa Bay with slight playoff hopes. But even though the game was played on a rain-soaked field, Payton called 48 pass plays and just 18 running plays. That kind of ratio suggests that the Saints were getting blown out and needed to catch up early. The game, however, was close throughout as neither team led by more than 10 points as the Saints ultimately lost by three and fell to 6-6 and all but out of the playoff chase. Payton called a new kind of game the following week against Atlanta. The Saints called 32 pass plays and 30 run plays as the team accumulated 184 yards on the ground and pulled out a thrilling 29-25 victory. I think Payton kept those two weeks in the forefront of his mind as he prepared for this season.
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| ShoBox Returns This Friday - 411mania.com Posted: 20 Oct 2009 12:17 PM PDT ShoBox Returns This Friday | Posted by Patrick Cassidy on 10.20.2009 Damian Frias is ready for Freddy Hernandez Showtime's ShoBox series has been built around the philosophy of pitting young prospects against tough opposition. That philosophy will be on display this Friday as ShoBox returns with an exciting night of fights. In the main event, Cuban - born Damian Frias (16-1, 7 KOs) will risk his 12 fight winning streak against Mexico's Freddy Hernandez (25-1, 18 KOs) who has been victorious in his last nine in a row. In the co-feature defending NABF super bantamweight champion Al Seeger (28-4, 22 KOs) will risk his belt against Victor Fonseca (16-0, 8 KOs) in a clash of two fighters who rank within the top 10 of several sanctioning bodies. Frias is coming off a 9 month layoff but does not expect that to factor into the fight. "I don't expect any ring rust and feel I'm 100 percent ready to fight again,'' Frias said. "Getting an opportunity to fight on ShoBox is a great thing and a tremendous opportunity. There are lots of good fighters in my weight class, and I want to fight any of them. This is my chance to prove to everybody that I'm back. Frias continued on his opponents style and his prospective gameplan for Friday night. "I can see that (Hernandez) likes to box, and sometimes likes to be aggressive. It depends, I guess, on the opponent he's facing. He's kind of versatile. He has a lot of different punches. I plan to mix it up. I'm going to come out in the first round and start working the jab. Everything is going to be off the jab." Hernandez, 30, is an eight-year pro who returned to the ring in July 2009 after a 15-month layoff. He will easily be the biggest test of Frias's young career as Hernandez holds wins over several notable opponents including Ben Tackie, Norberto Bravo, and Jesus Soto Karass
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| Jordan principal honored with national award - KARE Posted: 20 Oct 2009 01:00 PM PDT Jordan Elementary School Principal Stacy DeCorsey is headed to Washington DC to be honored as Minnesota's National Distinguished Principal for 2009. Stop by Jordan Elementary and you are just as likely to find Mrs. DeCorsey jugging apples in the lunchroom as you are to find her juggling schedules in the office. She values participation. But DeCorsey is also is focused on planning a good learning environment. Many rooms in the school have smart board technology. Students carry water bottles to stay hydrated when they're working in class. And fresh fruits and veggies are on the menu back in the lunchroom. Mrs. DeCorsey's philosophy is the school can make a difference in students' lives both in and out of class. While she's winning an award for work at the school, Mrs. Decorsey is quick to point out she doesn't do it alone. She says she's part of a tremendous team at Jordan Elementary. "There's not a single person here who would be OK with a child struggling or failing. It just isn't an option." The community will gather to honor their star principal tonight in Jordan. Then it's off to Washington, where Mrs. DeCorsey will join more than 60 other principals from around the country for a special award awards banquet.
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