February 4, 2013 | Volume 47 | Issue 20

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Anywhere but here

By Samantha Ouimette Staff Reporter San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver stirred up controversy earlier this week when he made homophobic comments during a radio interview. When asked if he would accept an openly gay player on his team, Culliver replied, No, we dont got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do cant be with that sweet stuff. Nah cant be in the locker room man. Nah. Culliver has since apologized for his comments, calling them ugly, and insists that he loves the city of San Francisco, which has one of the largest gay communities in the nation. He has also agreed to attend sensitivity training and education following the Super Bowl, and pledged to volunteer with at-risk homosexual youth throughout the nation. The Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XLVII gets to go to Disney World, but what do the losers get? Jell-O. As part of a new marketing strategy, those at the organizations front office has said that the company will be handing out thousands of cups of free Jell-O products on Tuesday in the losing city. Former players from the losing team will help hand out cups of chocolate pudding, the Jell-Os best-selling product. Fans who do not live in the teams home city can download a coupon for free Jell-O to be redeemed at their local store. Warren Sapp, former defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a member of its 2002 Super Bowl championship team, has been voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Sapp is the only first-ballot Hall of Famer in Buccaneers history, and the second player in Buccaneers history to be voted into the Hall of Fame after Lee Roy Selmon. The 2013 class includes legendary coach Bill Parcells, former Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Larry Allen, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Cris Carter, and Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden. Here we go again. On Tuesday, Stuart Sternberg, the principal shareholder of the Tampa Bay Rays ownership group, revamped his effort to get the Rays out of Tropicana Field and into a new stadium. Speaking in front of the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners, Sternberg and a group of Rays executives presented their case for needing options to relocate to a new stadium. The group claims that the organization, which was last in Major League Baseball in attendance during the 2012 season with an average of 19,255 fans per game, is struggling because it is handcuffed to the Trop. If they were located in a better location, I would definitely go to more games, said John Bos, a Tampa resident. But right now it is almost an hour trip there, and an hour trip back. The Rays are one of the top 10 MLB teams when it comes to television ratings. So the fan base is there. The stadium debate has not changed since the issue was last discussed in 2009. The Rays have a lease agreement with the city of St. Petersburg to remain at Tropicana Field through the year 2027, and the agreement prohibits them from discussing possible relocation with other cities. St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster uses this provision to stop any relocation talks. Attendance would be way better in Tampa, said Sal Cenete, of Tampa, Look at the Lightning. Four straight sellouts and the tickets cost double what the Rays

USF womens basketball: Something to fill that football void

By Mike Hopey Staff Columnist This is my Super Bowl column. The game has been played and like every other sports writer I will try to find the story that no one is talking about; the story that makes the reader scratch his or her head and say, hmm. Wasnt the Super Bowl great? I cant believe Joe Flacco or Colin Kaepernick played so well. Can you believe thats how Ray Lewis career ended? So OK, this column was written before the Super Bowl was played, about 30 minutes to be exact. What else can I say about a game many of us pretend to have an interest in? For the next week, columnists will write about the Super Bowl and wrap up all the loose ends of the NFL season. The national spotlight will then search for something to focus on until baseball starts up again. The NBA, NHL and March Madness will all have their time to shine before baseballs endless summer marathon starts. What will be overlooked, again, is womens college basketball. That is no less true here in the USF community and on the sports page of The Crows Nest. When it comes to covering the Lady Bulls, we have sucked. Womens basketball isnt as exciting as the mens game. Its not as fast, and the boys can dunk. Those are the things that sell tickets. But that isnt to say that the womens team works less hard or doesnt care as much. Looking at their records, it looks like the Lady Bulls might be working a lot harder than their male counterparts. USFs womens basketball team is 15-6, 4-4 in the Big East. They sit right in the middle of the standings. There are some winnable games left, like a Feb. 9 trip to Providence and a Feb. 16 home game against Seton Hall. UConn, the No. 3 team in the country, will make a trip to the Sun Dome on Mar. 2. With no football on you are all going to need something to do. Why not go to a game, or read a game recap. Its not going to kill you. Girls dont have cooties. So, how was that for finding the Super Bowl story no one is talking about?

Tropicana Field opened in 1990 in hopes of attracting a Major League team.

Courtesy of Opakapaka

charge. Sternberg is lobbying for support to move the team to another location within the Tampa Bay region. He continually references the findings of a report published by the ABC Coalition which identified four possible sites for relocation (three were in Hillsborough County) as the best solution to the Rays current attendance and revenue issues. St. Petersburg generates millions in tax revenue every year by simply having the Rays in the city, and Tropicana Field provides hundreds of jobs to people within a region that has struggled economically for some time. Sternberg says he is losing money every year by paying out millions to keep high-end players but barely getting any revenue in return. Rays fans in St. Petersburg naturally have a different view on relocation. The reason there are so few season ticket holders in St. Pete is that [Sternburg] said the team was

going to be vaporized and everyone knows they are moving out of the city, said Michael Kirchner, a St. Petersburg native. Why would they invest in a team that has clearly stated we hate our home and we want to leave? These opinions represent the dilemma that the Rays ownership faces in regards to relocation. With three times more relocation options located in Hillsborough, the Rays risk further alienating a fan base that has already endured years of will they or wont they? questions concerning the team potentially moving. If the Rays do not move, they risk not being able to sustain themselves in the future. Commission Chairman Kenneth T. Welch understands the dilemma and encouraged a meeting between Foster and Sternberg, noting if the mayor comes to a point where he allows you to look at both counties, I would be very supportive of that because I dont see another way forward. sports@crowsneststpete.com

By Samantha Ouimette Staff Reporter

Rays and USF team up

Mark your calendars, Bulls. USF and the Tampa Bay Rays have teamed up for the sixth year in a row to put on a special event for current students and alumni. The USF Alumni Association has confirmed the sixth annual USF Night at the Rays will take place on Saturday, Aug.. 3 at Tropicana Field. That night will pit the hometown Rays against the reigning World Series champions San Francisco Giants in a rare matchup, with the two teams not having played each other since 2004. The USF community can buy discounted ticket prices, with a portion of each ticket sold going directly to the USF Alumni Association. Special guests at the game will include school mascot

Joe Madden enters his eighth season as Rays skipper in 2013.

Courtesy of USF Athletics

Rocky the Bull, former USF athletics stars and the Sun Dolls. Current and former Bulls who attend the game will also enjoy an

exclusive giveaway that commemorates the continuing partnership between USF and the Rays within the Tampa Bay community.

hopey@mail.usf.edu

January 28, 2013 | Volume 47 | Issue 19

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Bulls alumnus at Bowl

By Samantha Ouimette Staff Reporter Jim Leavitt, the first coach in USF football history and the man who built the program from the groundup, is headed to the Superbowl. Shortly after his departure from the USF, Leavitt was hired as the linebackers coach for the San Francisco 49ers. He has flourished under Jim Harbaughs direction since that time, and in only his second season with the team he will have his players competing for the most coveted prize in professional football. Leavitts success in the NFL will have many USF fans rooting for the 49ers this weekend. However, his success has also lead to those same fans wondering what might have been had Leavitt been allowed to stick around, and where the USF football program might be today had he never been fired. The controversy surrounding Leavitts removal is well known. An investigation launched by the school found that he had grabbed former Bulls wide receiver Joel Miller by the throat, slapped him in the face and then lied about doing so. Leavitt continually denied the allegations brought against him, but ultimately USF President Judy Genshaft and Athletic Director Doug Woolard found that they had all the evidence they needed to let him go. Despite the documented backtracking by Miller and his father, who at one point told reporters that Leavitt did not hit his son but rather grabbed him by the shoulder pads in an attempt to motivate him, it is not necessarily hard to believe that this sort of coaching style is up Leavitts alley. Even with the findings of the investigation, many USF fans look Northern Illinois set a new record for fewest points scored in a first half on Saturday, scoring just four points against Eastern Michigan through the first 20 minutes of the game. The Huskies broke their own record, as the team had set the record for the fewest points in a first half in the shot clock era earlier this season with just five against Dayton on Dec. 1. The Huskies dreadful first half was marked by a 3 percent shooting accuracy that included 29 straight misses. NIU would go on to lose to Eastern Michigan by the score of 42-25. A dominating win over the Detroit Pistons wasnt the only thing that had the Miami Heat celebrating on Friday night. Michael Drysch, a 50-yearold computer technician from McHenry, Ill., nailed a shot from the half-court line and won himself and the Boys & Girls Club of America $75,000 courtesy of the LeBron James Family Foundation. Drysch was excitedly tackled by 6-foot8-inch James immediately after sinking the incredible hook shot. When asked what he would do with the money, he responded, Give the government half. After taxes, his winnings are $52,770. National Signing Day for the world of college football is less than a week away, and half of the top 10 recruits have yet to announce who they will be playing for next season. Florida, who is projected to have the best 2013 recruiting class in the nation, has snagged two five-star recruits, cornerback Hargreaves III and running back Kelvin Taylor; the three other committed recruits belong to Auburn, Notre Dame, and Alabama respectively. The remaining young men, who have been ranked by scouts at ESPN, will have until Feb. 6 to make their official decision.

A surefire Super Bowl bet

By Mike Hopey Staff Columnist Super Bowl predictions are a dime a dozen. Someone has guessed whether the first play will be a run or pass or whether the coin flip is heads or tails. Predicting the Super Bowl isnt very hard. There is a fiftyfifty chance to get it rightthough some will manage to make a fool of themselves. I wont be predicting the game but I am willing to make another prediction. I am willing to bet that in the infinite expanse of social media Ray Lewis and his checkered past will be trending. Its inevitable. Detractors will latch on to the story of the double murder after Super Bowl XXXIV in Atlanta that involved Lewis as a reason to root against him. Because in their minds, no one who has ever been involved in a murder has turned his life around. Lewis supporters will cry foul at those critics because he has found God and leads a better life. Lewis appears in more commercials answering questions from little girls than ones where he snarls at the camera. To his supporters everyone who has found God is above reproach. Sunday will be Lewis last NFL game and a day where noise will crowd the air from supporters and critics trying to have the last say on his legacy. After all, the public is the keeper of his legacy. Ray Lewis doesnt owe the people anything, though. There is little more he can do except live with the burden of the truth about that January night. If you have never had any faith that people can make a better life for themselves then Lewis is a good place to start. Lewis isnt going to care much on Super Bowl Sunday what the world has to say about him and his legacy. When you see a grown man crying and drooling on himself during the Star Spangled Banner you had better think that that is a man secure with who he is. But theyll still talk about him. One side wants to make sure our quick-to-forgive society doesnt prematurely raise Lewis to sainthood while the other side wants to make sure that his past wont condemn him. When the talking heads on ESPN are done yelling at each other and the dust settles on Lewis career both sides will have their voices heard. No one, not even a popular athlete, is remembered for just the good. Who wants to take that bet? hopey@mail.usf.edu

Courtesy of USF Athletics

back fondly on Leavitts time with the program. Leavitt is a primary reason for why the USF Bulls are playing Division I football today. His leadership helped to move the program up from independent to Conference USA to the Big East. Under Leavitt, USF enjoyed the fastest ascension into the top 25 rankings from entry into I-A/Football Championship Subdivision in NCAA history as well as many other records and firsts. So what if he had stayed? There is simply no way to relate in definite terms what Leavitt might have accomplished had he stayed. After three disappointing seasons under Skip Holtz, and the relative uncertainty that comes with any new coach such as Willie Taggart, its easy to see why USF fans yearn for the better days of huge home wins over West Virginia and a No. 2 national ranking. Many fans think if Leavitt were coach today, USF would almost certainly be out of the debacle that

is the current Big East conference and into a more stable conference such as the Big 12 Conference. At the very least, the program would not have suffered the setbacks that have caused them to fall in the eyes of recruits and the college football world. The future with Willie Taggart at the helm is looking bright, so the nostalgia felt towards Jim Leavitt will have to remain just that. The man who turned down the head coaching job at Alabama twice to stay with the program he built, the one who ran sprints up and down the field before games to get himself pumped up, is now lending his talents to the 49ers in their quest for a sixth Super Bowl win. All Bulls fans can do now is wish Leavitt the best of luck going into this weekends game, and hope that he looks back on his time with USF as fondly as USF looks back on their time with him. sports@crowsneststpete.com

By Samantha Ouimette Staff Reporter

Smith leads on court, off

insisting that any team that offered her a scholarship do the same for her sister. USF obliged, and after two years at community college, Smith thrived under coach Jose Fernandezs direction. But Smith would go on to tear the ACL of her left knee in the final game of her junior year, leaving her senior season in doubt. Shes come back better than ever, and is this seasons standout in the quest to attain the second NCAA Tournament berth in USF womens basketball history.
Courtesy of USF Athletics

Senior guard Andrea Smith has been lighting up the court for USFs womens basketball team this season, and has been a major contributor to the Bulls impressive 14-5 record. Together with her twin sister Andrell, who she is older than by just five minutes, she has helped to form a duo that has left opponents struggling to answer. Smith leads the team in points scored with 337, an average of 17.7 per game, and has already been named Big East player of the week this season. In high school, she scared off potential recruiters with her double or nothing mantra,

Andrea Smith
sports@crowsneststpete.com

January 7, 2013 | Volume 47 | Issue 16

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Mens basketball team has potential, but not enough to beat the Orange
Trust needed for long-term prosperity
By Mike Hopey Staff Columnist More important than a pension fund. More important than contract lengths. More important than the salary cap. More important than the definition of hockey related revenue. The most important thing that needs to be established from this lockout mess is trust. The days leading up to the final resolution in the spat between the National Hockey League and the NHL Players Association were spent with both parties four blocks apart in New York City. Federal mediator Scot Beckenbaugh, who will undoubtedly drink for free for the rest of his life, went back and forth between both parties because the players couldnt trust the owners enough to be in the same room. In the days prior the league reneged on provisions they had promised and almost doomed the whole damn thing and the whole season. Both sides, seeing the importance of what they were doing, kept talking. If not for the efforts of Beckenbaugh everything could have fallen apart. Over the next 10 years there wont be a Scot Beckenbaugh to keep the fragile egos of players and owners in check. Parties from both sides of the trenches need to cross the war zone to forge a new relationship. Through the whole mess the owners acted like the league should be run like the way Joe McGrath ran the Chiefs in the 1977 movie Slap Shot rather than a multi-billion dollar entity. The players come across as heroes. In reality both lie somewhere in the middle. From here out it cant be about whose fault it is. Neither side can look at the other with a distrusting eye. Perhaps both sides can start by focusing on the fans and the workers who depend on them, the groups really hurt by this lockout, and build a foundation on that. hopey@mail.usf.edu By Samantha Ouimette Staff Reporter For all the disappointment USF fans have faced during the college football season, the current mens basketball team has the potential to be the perfect pick-me-up. While students have been studying for finals and enjoying winter break, the Bulls have been hard at work on the court. USF has tackled the non-conference portion of its schedule with the skill and confidence of a team that is fresh off its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 20 years, boasting a record of 9-3 going into conference play. The record is a improvement over last seasons non-conference record of 7-6, and in many ways, this 201213 Bulls team looks as strong as if not better thanits predecessor. Though some point out the squad lacks a true shooter and struggles in areas, it is difficult to expect perfection from a team that is experiencing the growing pains of losing key seniors and infusing freshman into a new environment. The Bulls are ranked 280th in the nation in points scored with a total of 798 points. USF also struggles in hitting shots, ranked 217th at 42 percent. This team has a long way to go in terms of improvement, but there are a lot of positives to this seasons squad. It would seem that for every statistical struggle USF has as a team, there is always a bright spot to counterbalance it. The Bulls may have difficulty as a collective unit on offense, sophomore guard Anthony Collins is fifth in the nation in assists and 18th in assistto-turnover ratio. It is this balance that has been the key to the Bulls success this season. Even though the record may not show it, this team has seen its fair share of balance in its winloss pattern as well. USF started off the season at home with a blowout loss to in-state rival Central Florida, and then won their next two games. Afterwards the squad fell to Western Michigan, but bounced back to win their next three games. USF lost to No. 23 Oklahoma State before tallying four wins in a row. That back and forth took the Bulls to the opening of Big East conference play. First on the list was the highly ranked Syracuse Orange. Conference record is taken into great consideration when vying for a tournament spot; starting off on the right foot was USFs goal. However, true to the win-loss pattern that USF has established this season, the team dropped its Big East opener to the Orange by the score of 55-44. While the Bulls were able to start out strong, going on a 19-10 run during the opening minutes of the first half, their usual problems started to catch up

Guard Jawanza Poland attempts field goal in USF 55-44 loss to Syracuse Orange on Sunday.

Courtesy of Tom Hagerty

to them. By the end of the game, the missed shots and sloppy passes were too much to overcome. While a win against a nationally ranked team would have been big for their NCAA Tournament resume, the Bulls will have plenty of chances to make up for this missed opportunity as their schedule does not get easier from here. In less than a week the Bulls will be up against No. 4 Louisville Cardinals, who they will meet again later in the season at the Sun Dome. USF will also navigate the rest of the talented Big East:

No. 14 Cincinnati Bearcats, No. 15 Georgetown Hoyas, No. 21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and No. 24 Pittsburgh Panthers. Coach Stan Heath knows that his team needs to play more consistently for the rest of the season. From this game on, there is little room for error; little room for sloppy play, poorly executed plays, or almost wins. Every single game counts. sports@crowsneststpete.com

Get to know Toarlyn Fitzpatrick

The NHL lockout has officially ended. As of 4:40 a.m. on Sunday, the NHL and the NHLPA came to terms on what is to be the framework for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. The negotiating session that produced the deal was over 16 hours long. The season is expected to start on either Jan. 15 or Jan. 19. Former head coach of Syracuse Doug Marrone has left the program to coach the Buffalo Bills. Marrone was formerly an offensive line coach for the New York Jets and offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints before being hired by Syracuse four years ago. He has led the Orange to two bowl wins and a co-Big East title in his final year as head coach. The 2012-13 college football season is coming to an end as the last of the bowl games play out. The BCS National Championship, to this year in Miami, will take place Jan. 7 at 8:30 PM on ESPN. The match features No. 1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who is undefeated, versus No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide, who won the National Title last year. Alabama is favored by 10 points, but Notre Dame leads the all-time series at 5-1. The United States under-20 mens hockey team took home the gold at the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship last weekend in Ufa, Russia. The teams road to gold was not smooththey lost to Russia and Canada early in the tournament. The U.S. beat rival Canada, who failed to medal for the first time since 1998, 5-1 in the semifinals. The Americans would go on to win 3-1 over defending champ Sweden in the gold medal game, marking their second WJHC title in four years and their third title win ever.

Courtesy of J. Meric

Senior Toarlyn Fitzpatricks journey with the USF mens basketball program has been a memorable one. The standout 6-foot-8-inch forward out of Tampa King High School received offers from schools such as Miami, Alabama, Ole Miss and Florida State. Ultimately, Fitzpatrick passed up these offers and chose to stay in his hometown and play for the Bulls. Fitzpatrick, or Fitz, is an obvious

candidate for a basketball star due to his size, but tried football instead. But when Fitzpatrick hit the 6-foot4-inch mark in middle school, his father suggested his height might be put to greater use on the basketball court. In 2012-13, Fitzpatrick is the teams leading scorer. He hopes to build on the successes he has had and seeks to get some attention from the NBA.

October 29, 2012 | Volume 47 | Issue 10

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New and exciting ways to blow it

Redshirt senior running back Lindsey Lamar took it to the house with an 80-yard run to help keep the Bulls on top 20-3. In addition to the huge runs provided by the Murray-Lamar tandem, the resilient USF defense held the Orange to just 3 points through the course of six drives. Thirty minutes in, the Bulls looked like they were well on their way to a win. The Jekyll and Hyde that is the USF football program began to make its appearance at the start of the third quarter. The smooth, well put together drives of the first half were gone, replaced with a team that gave up three touchdowns in less than 7 minutes. A Syracuse team that struggled to gain 200 yards of offense through the first two quarters suddenly accumulated over 175 yards in the third. USFs cushy 20-point lead suddenly turned into a one-point deficit. Though the Bulls would fight back and end the game with an impressive 369 rushing yards and 18 points from kicker Maikon Bonani, the lack of consistency ultimately lead to its demise by the slimmest of margins with 3 seconds left on the clock. Holtz acknowledged the pain but expressed some optimism for the rest of the season. Its hurting right now, he said. I dont know what the message is, but we have got to find a way to get a win. Its heartbreaking to watch us compete, take the lead, get the stops, go upbut theyre not quitting, theyre not giving up, theyre not waving the white flag. Though the team is continuing to play hard, Holtz is aware that there are many aspects that need to be looked at and changed. Whether those changes will be drastic or not remains to be seen, and whether these changes will occur before the Nov. 3 game against UConn is also not clear. USF will have to win each and every one of its four remaining games to avoid missing bowl eligibility for the second straight year. sports@crowsneststpete.com

Thomas Boyd/ The Crows Nest

USF quarterback B.J. Daniels runs the ball in Saturdays heartbreaking homecoming loss to the Syracuse Orange.

By Samantha Ouimette Crows Nest Correspondent Hurt. It was the word used by everyone, from head coach Skip Holtz to quarterback B.J. Daniels, to describe how the USF football program is feeling at the moment.

After a last-minute loss that should have never been to the Syracuse Orange by the score of 37-36, there is little else the coaches, the players and the fans could possibly be feeling. This team is past the point of frustration. The Bulls started the game strong, going 75 yards in 12 plays

to score their first opening drive touchdown of the season. It was apparent from the onset that USF intended to rely heavily on its run game. Senior running back Demetris Murray set the tone early with six carries that would lead to him scoring the first six points of the game.

Coming into the season the national opinion of the Big East was that it was a weak football conference, undeserving of its Bowl Championship Series automatic bid. Through the first seven weeks that wasnt the case. Three Big East teams were undefeated and in the Top 25. But when the first BCS rankings came out that all changed. Cincinnati fell from the unbeatens last week and out of the Top 25. This week the Mid American Conference continued to take it to the Big East as Kent State upset Rutgers. The Bulls are now one of two teams in the conference that havent won a conference game. They will look to end that Saturday at Raymond James Stadium against UConn. Louisville 34 Cincinnati 31 OT The Bearcats tried to ice Louisvilles kicker John Wallace with a timeout in overtime Friday night. All that did was give the Cardinals a second chance after they fumbled the snap on their first try. Wallace lined up and drilled the kick for the win. Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater lit up the Bearcats for 416 yards in the air. Louisville stays unbeaten and atop the conference. Kent St. 35 Rutgers 23 The Scarlet Knights went down 28-10 to the Golden Flashes in the first half and could never recover. Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova threw an astounding six interceptions while Kent St. rushed for over 200 yards. The loss ruins a chance at a battle of the unbeatens against Louisville in the last week of the season. Pitt 47 Temple 17 The Owls and Panthers renewed their Keystone State rivalry, but just for a season. The Panthers never had to sweat much as they rolled to their first conference win. Ray Graham rushed for two touchdowns and caught another while racking up 180 total yards. Big East Standings (as of Oct. 28) Rutgers 4-0 (7-1) 10 Louisville 3-0 (8-0) Syracuse 3-1 (4-4) Temple 2-2 (3-4) Cincinnati 1-1 (5-2) Pitt 1-3 (4-4) UConn 0-3 (3-5) USF 0-4 (2-6)