Volume 128 Issue 69
Kansan.com
Thursday, January 29, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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COMMENTARY NFL no longer cares about the sport, just money
W that's up with all the fines and hypocrisy in the
NFL?
Wearing Beats by Dre cost San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick $10,000. Why? Because the NFL has a contract with Bose.
Earlier this season, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman called out the NFL in one of the more strange press conferences of the season. Sherman had a conversation with a cardboard cutout of teammate Doug Baldwin, which Baldwin was holding himself.
"Gee Louise," Sherman said. "You know who does pay me a lot of money? Beats by Dre, the wonderful headphones that I'm wearing. But the league doesn't let me say anything about them. Why is that? That seems a little hypocritical. It seems like we're in a league where they say, 'Players, you don't endorse any alcohol. Please don't endorse alcohol, no DUIs, please,' but a beer sponsor is their biggest sponsor."
Want to wear something with your own trademarked name on it? Well, that's too bad. Seahawks star running back Marshawn "Beast Mode" Lynch could get fined for a hat he wore at NFL Media Day on Tuesday.
With all of the fines the NFL doles out over the season, you would think they would make enough money along with ticket and merchandise sales, right? Wrong.
In October, the NFL Shop sells pink NFL gear, with the proceeds going to the American Cancer Society. That's what the NFL wants you to think.
What's so shady about that? The NFL is a for-profit company, right? Not quite. The NFL takes in more than $9.5 billion a year ... and is a non-profit company.
Lynch was also threatened with fines if he wore his 24-karat gold cleats in the NFC Championship game. The cleats violated the NFL's uniform code.
Cleats have been a hot commodity in the league.
Chicago Bears wide receiver Brandon Marshall was fined $15,000 back in December 2013 for wearing orange cleats That one reminds me of the time I was fined back in middle school for not having the same shade of brown on my belt and shoes.
A "Business Insider" article reports for every $100 in sales of the pink gear, only $3.54 is actually going toward research.
With everything that is going on, it's pretty easy to see that the NFL doesn't really care about football anymore. It just cares about money.
The Bears' primary color is orange, so why did Marshall get fined for that? It's because the cleats weren't approved by the NFL.
Sophomore guard Frank Mason III dribbles up the court against TCU guard Kyan Anderson during the first half of Wednesday night's game in Fort Worth, Texas. Mason had 16 points, three rebounds and two assists.
Edited by Mackenzie Clark
TONY GUTIERREZ/ASSOCIATED PRESS
CLOSE CALL
Kansas survives late surge by TCU, pulls out 64-61 win
BEN FELDERSTEIN
@Ben_Felderstein
In front of a crowd no bigger than 4,700 people due to TCU's arena being under construction, the Horned Frogs gave the Jayhawks a run for their money in Wilkerson-Greines Activity Center. Behind strong bench play and a good defensive effort, the Jayhawks outlasted the Horned Frogs, 64-61.
After a strong performance against West Virginia that ended in an overtime loss, TCU came out of the gate strong against Kansas. Since their inception into the Big 12, TCU has only two conference wins. One came earlier this season against Texas Tech, and the other came two seasons ago against Kansas.
Kansas' starters struggled in the first half of the game as they were outscored by the bench 20-16. Freshman Devonte' Graham led the way off the bench with five points on 2-2 shooting.
Graham was strong on the defensive end as well, forcing Horned Frog turnovers on consecutive possessions. Graham's turnovers were a part of a 15-2 run that had the Jayhaws up big.
The Horned Frogs chipped away at the Kansas lead as the Jayhawks starters struggled to score to close out the first half. Kansas was only able to take a 36-30 lead into the break with all of their bigs in foul trouble. All five of Kansas' forwards ended the first half with two fouls.
TCU came out of the half on fire, going on a 7-0 run to grab a 37-36 lead while the Jayhawks looked lost on the offensive end. For the next few minutes, the two teams traded buckets and leads.
After a 13-5 TCU run, sophomore Frank Mason took control of the Jayhawks and the game. Mason scored in double figures for his
17th straight game, scoring 16 points on 8-12 shooting with three rebounds and two assists.
On the back of another Jamari Traylor hustle play that ended in a Traylor block and an empty TCU offensive possession, Kansas was playing strong and staying ahead. With two minutes to play, TCU sparked a 9-0 run
to get the game to within two. But five free throws from sophomore Brannen Greene iced the game for the Jayhawks.
and sophomore Landon Lucas led the way with three each.
Kansas' bench continued to outplay their starters, putting up 38 points. Despite the foul trouble, the Jayhawks' big men used their size to their advantage, dominating TCU with 12 blocks. Traylor
Up next for the Jayhawks is the Sunflower Showdown against in-state rival Kansas State Saturday afternoon in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks still sit atop West Virginia in the Big 12.
Edited by Laura Kubicki
Late defensive stops give Jayhawks win
DYLAN SHERWOOD
@dmantheman2011
The Jayhawks were seeking their third consecutive win when they traveled to Ames, Iowa, to take on the Cyclones on Wednesday night. Kansas had not won at Iowa State since Feb. 18, 2006, but key stops late in the game secured a 61-56 win over Iowa State.
Senior gaurd Asia Boyd drives to the hoop in the win against West Virginia last Saturday. The Jayhawks defeated the Cyclones last night for a third straight win.
The Jayhawks (12-9, 3-5)
snapped a four-game losing streak to the Cyclones.
Kansas controlled the game for the first half, leading for the majority of the half before Iowa State took a 24-22 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Kansas was trailing by as many as eight in the early going before coach Bonnie Henrickson called a timeout to talk to her team. Kansas kept fighting back, one possession at a time. Iowa State led 47-40 with 11 minutes remaining.
BEN BRODSKY/KANSAN
But the Jayhawks weren't about to go without a fight.
In a matter of a five-and-a half-minute stretch, Iowa State did not score a field goal. That was until Seanna Johnson hit a jumper, as Kansas trailed 49-43 with 6:30 remaining.
Senior guard Natalie Knight, who was held scoreless in the first half, came out in the second half answering with back-to-
back three-pointers to tie the game at 49-49 with 5:21 remaining.
Reigning Phillips 66 Big 12 Player of the Week senior forward Chelsea Gardner had another big night, giving Kansas a two-point lead off a mid-range jumper. On the next defensive possession she had a block, where she turned it into a layup with an and-one.
iowa State cut the deficit to one with 13 seconds remaining, but Kansas made free throws when they counted. iowa State put up a misfire from long range. Gardner rebounded and made two from the line to seal the deal for Kansas.
Kansas shot 42 percent on 23-of-55 shooting from the field, five of 13 from the 3-point line for 39 percent
and were 10-of-16 from the charity stripe for 63 percent.
charity stripe for 65 percent. The seniors again controlled the offense against Iowa State, scoring 49 of the 61 points. Gardner led the way with another double-double of 23 points and 11 rebounds. This is Gardner's third consecutive game with 20 or more points. Senior guard Asia Boyd added 15 points and Knight had 11
points all in the second half. Kansas, with this victory, pulls within a half game of Texas for fifth in the conference. Kansas is tied with Texas Tech for sixth in the Big 12. Kansas will travel to Waco, Texas, to play Baylor at 1 p.m. Sunday. Kansas fell to Baylor 71-63 in their first meeting on Jan. 17.
Edited by Mackenzie Clark
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