Bishop Media Sports Network
Flying Through Playoffs
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Heading into this series against the Knicks, the Atlanta Hawks knew that they were the more talented team.
The young Hawks squad, led by All-Star Trae Young, never seemed to be bothered by the physical antics that the Knicks brought with them to get any competitive advantage over the Hawks. However, it might’ve been the opposite of what the Knicks wanted because it only seemed to make things worse.
In his first ever playoff series, Trae Young averaged 29.2 ppg and 9.8 apg and shot 44.1% from the floor vs. the Knicks. It’s safe to say he put on a show by making play after play for Atlanta.
For the entire series, New York fans were giving the Hawks all they could handle but they responded from a Game-2 loss in New York with three straight wins to close out the series in dominating fashion.
Strangely enough the Hawks played their worst game statistically in Game-5 and still came out with a 103-89 win. Showing evidence of Nate McMillan’s coaching impact bringing the Hawks, who are known to be a defensive nightmare, to leading the playoffs in scoring defense.
To McMillan credit he has turned the Hawks around from a very disappointing season to being just where they had hoped they would be at the start of the season.
What is probably the most exciting part of this team besides going 33-13 since McMillan became the interim Head Coach, is the fact this is not all Trae Young’s doing, everyone is contributing.
The Hawks bench of Huerter, Williams, and Gallonari are all valuable parts to this team’s success while Williams and Gallonari are a part of the few Hawks with playoff experience.
Also, the additions of Bogdan Bogdanovic and Clint Capela continue to look better and better as this team continues to make its playoff run.
After many years in Houston reaching the Western Conference Finals and being a role player, Capela is finding a home in Atlanta and resembling the Hawks legend Dkembe Mutumbo while doing it.
Capela is currently second in playoff blocks and third in playoff rebounding, continuously proving that he is a difference maker while on the floor.
As for Bogdanovic, he currently has the fifth highest plus/minus of anyone in the playoffs at +78 while giving Atlanta another dependable offensive talent. Bogdanovic’s impact goes further than numbers due to his defensive ability as he showed throughout the first round.
After clinching their spot in the eastern conference semifinals, the Hawks will try and continue to do damage to their opponents but this is no easy feat.
Through the three regular season meetings between these two clubs the Sixers won two of them and when you look at these teams on paper there might be a clear favorite.
However, over the last few months the Hawks have shown they’re nothing to mess with either while both the Hawks and the 76ers have posted a 31-12 record since March 1st.
Even with Philly potentially missing their MVP candidate in Joel Embiid I’m sure most people will write the Hawks off, but after what I just witnessed, I’d say the Hawks will give the 76ers fits.
Extension
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
There are stories out everywhere, on June 1, 2021 the dead-period was lifted.
For those who forgot about COVID-19 already, and all the restrictions around that, it means the return of camps on campus, unofficial/official visits and workouts on campus.
For the first time since January 2020, official visits return to college campuses. For the record, an official visit means the college is able to finance the trip for the recruit. Recruits and their families can take five visits total but only once per school.
The Florida Gators wasted little time getting recruits back in The Swamp, as they had their Summer Kick Off event on June 1st.
With all that pent up recruiting energy ready to be released, the plans for a return to “normal” are anything but, unfortunately. Florida Gators have official visits scheduled for every June weekend. Camps are already planned out and for the first time ever, players can work out for coaches.
Florida coach Dan Mullen said, “it will be waves upon waves upon waves upon waves of kids coming to visit.”
Throw in the transfer portal. And don’t forget the new one-time transfer rule. Did the waves just get larger?
All of it is another example of college football essentially coming down to a simple declarative statement: It’s all about recruiting.
The Gators have camps scheduled the entire month of June: June 7, Skills and Drills Camp; June 9, 16 & 23 7 vs 7 Gator Shootout and OLine/DLine Big man Challenge; June 14 Top Gun QB/WR Camp, In the Trenches Camp and Skills Academy for RB, DB & LB; June 25 Elite Individual Camp.
June 2021 is the biggest recruiting month in the history of recruiting.
Florida administration has been so impressed with the recruiting job; they have given Coach Dan Mullen a three-year contract extension that gives him a significant raise. Under the terms of Mullen’s new contract agreement, he will be the coach at Florida through the 2026 season.
The new extension will also raise Mullen’s annual compensation total to $7.6 million for each year remaining on his deal. With a raise of about $1.5 million per season, the financial breakdown varies by year.
USA Today shows Mullen is now the fourth highest paid coach in 2021.
Tebow Impact
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Consumers love Tim Tebow and are happy to see him back in the NFL.
Just 24 hours after signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tebow’s apparel has been flying off the sleeves.
NFLShop.com reported the top 5 selling items all belong to Tebow: black alternate jerseys for men, women and children, as well as T-shirts for men and women.
The Tebow effect caused Tom Brady’s red Tampa Bay Buccaneers jersey to fall to ninth on the list of top sellers.
Tebow’s jersey was the bestselling uniform when he was with the Denver Broncos in 2010, New York Jets in 2012, New England Patriots in 2013 and Philadelphia Eagles in 2015.
In 2016 for a few weeks his New York Mets jersey was the best-selling Major League Baseball jersey in the country.
Tebow’s longest run as the best-selling jersey in sport came as a quarterback at the University of Florida, where even to this day, it holds the record for the most jerseys of a college player ever sold.
Tebow signed a one-year deal (non-guaranteed) to play tight end with the Jaguars. He is currently sporting the number 85 jersey. He might not even wear the 85 jersey for long.
If Jacksonville moves backup quarterback Gardner Minshew, which rumors suggest they are trying, Tebow could claim his iconic 15 jersey.
If that happens, you can bet football and Tebow fans won’t hesitate to complete their collection.
As a sputtering franchise, the Jaguars didn’t warrant much attention last season, but look at them now! The Jaguars are the talk of the NFL on shows, radio and social media around the country.
The attention is only going to intensify as OTA’s starts and the media will be allowed to watch practice in person this week. Tebow obviously has generated most of the attention because of his comeback at age 33 to play tight end, a position he’s never once played.
Jaguars jerseys are three of the top seven and four of the top 15 jerseys on NFLShop.com.
Tebow is a megastar in the Jacksonville area, a former standout at Nease High School and the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner at Florida. He also helped Urban Meyer win two national championships for the Florida Gators.
Tim Tebow will be trying to land a spot on the Jaguar roster and battling Chris Manhertz, James O’Shaughnessy, Luke Farrell and Tyler Davis on the roster.
Whatever you think of Tim Tebow, you must say, he makes a tremendous financial impact wherever he plays.
Teal Hope
By: Jeff Doke
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The NFL Draft is one of those magical times for sports fans. A time where hope springs eternal, and your eyesight is clouded by visions of Lombardi Trophies and Belichekian Dynasties yet to be – that is, unless you’re a Raiders fan.
Of course, I don’t have much room to talk since I pull for a team that drafted a punter when Russell Wilson was still on the board.
Right now, however, is not a magical time. We are several weeks removed from the draft, a week or so past rookie minicamps, and less than a month away from the first OTAs. The new has rubbed off the recent draft picks, and the time for second guessing has begun.
For the Jaguars, the new hasn’t rubbed off the first overall pick. The open arms that have welcomed Trevor Lawrence to Duval are still wide open and our new franchise quarterback is still firmly ensconced in his honeymoon phase.
There’s really no reason to second-guess this pick; until his play on the field shows us otherwise, Lawrence was the right pick at the right time. Kind of hard to have gotten this wrong.
After that, things get a little fuzzy. When the Jags selected Travis Etienne with the 25th overall pick, I’ll be honest I was shocked. Mouth agape, hand over craw, absolute blindside shocked.
From what I can tell, Etienne was not on anybody’s radar at that pick, save for Urban Meyer. In the immediate aftermath of the selection, it seemed to make sense. You bring in a potential Hall of Fame caliber running back that already knows the potential Hall of Fame caliber franchise quarterback that was selected earlier in the round.
It seems like a great way to give both of them a little more familiarity starting this new phase of their careers. Granted, it was the first time in NFL history that a quarterback and running back from the same college team were selected by the same NFL franchise in the first round, but in a weird way it makes sense and brought some much-needed excitement to EverBank.
But are we looking at the pick “through teal-colored lenses?” Is it just the fan in us that sees what we want to see?
Realistically, was this a truly necessary pick at 25? James Robinson proved that it was a mistake not to draft him with his record-setting rookie campaign.
Did we really need another big time running back? The view through the teal-colored lenses sees shades of Kamara & Ingram, but the realist in me sees that offensive line that still needs work. Would it have made more sense to trade out of the first round, beef up the second & third rounds and get T-Law some blindside protection? That’s a solid “maybe.”
Then there’s the second-round picks. As a self-proclaimed Dawguar, I was giddy to see another Red & Black selection from my favorite pro team…but then the teal-colored lenses come off, and we see some concern.
While Tyson Campbell will compete for a starting job, his stats beg the question of whether he should be. As a three-year starter in Coach Kirby Smart’s punishing defense, Campbell allowed a 59% completion rate to opposing QBs, and had just one interception in 33 games as a Dawg.
Compare that to the other UGA corner taken in the draft – Eric Stokes (drafted by the Packers four picks after the Etienne selection) had four INTs in just nine games last year, and two of those picks were taken back for TDs.
Yikes. Now, I’m not only second-guessing the Campbell selection, I’m back to questioning the Etienne pick again.
Later in the second round at #45 overall, the O-Line finally gets the nod. Walker Little was an All-conference selection at Stanford as a sophomore, before losing most of his Junior season to a knee injury in the season opener and losing all of his Senior season due to COVID.
Potential? Absolutely. The fact that he hasn’t seen any significant game action in two full seasons gives me pause. I have similar concerns with our sole 3rd round pick Andre Cisco. He’s a ball hawk with 13 interceptions in 24 games, but he missed 11 games last year when he tore his ACL.
After colliding with a teammate. During pre-game warmups. Oof.
All total, this draft (and the post draft signing of Touchdown Timmy) leaves the fan in me feeling very optimistic of the future. That’s why I’ll be leaving these teal-colored lenses on for as long as I can, until the realist in me gets his way. Or the regular season performance tells me otherwise.
Like it has done most of these last 20 seasons.
Running Into The Future
By: Jason Bishop
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Despite the playoff appearance last season, the Camden County Wildcats are looking to put last season and the past few years behind them.
Camden finished 5-6 last year and had head coach Bob Sphire resign in the offseason. This left the Wildcat program looking for answers and trying to rebuild the mystique and tradition of the program.
To accomplish this the Wildcats hired former Camden coach Jeff Herron. Herron is a legend in Camden, mostly due to him bringing home three state titles in his original tenure. He has a won a total of five.
With the return of Herron, this also means the return of the Wing-T offense to Chris Gilman Stadium. No one is expected to benefit more from that offense than returning RB Jamie Felix.
Felix is a great athlete and he exploded onto the national scene his sophomore year, especially when he rushed for over 200 yards in a playoff loss to eventual state champ, Marietta.
Felix did not see much playing time last season due to injury; a nagging hamstring kept the Camden star sidelined for a bulk of the season.
When Felix did return, he was still not 100% but even playing injured in the Tift and Lowndes games you could see just how talented this kid is.
Felix, almost single handedly, kept Camden in the Lowndes game, gathering big first down after big first down late in that game. Camden eventually fell by a touchdown in that game.
The next week, in the playoffs, Jamie Felix broke a huge, long, late game run to tie the game against Parkview. Camden eventually fell in that game as well in overtime.
Felix will be a monster in the Wing-T and will not have to carry the entire rushing load by himself as the Wing-T’s design. Plus, Camden looks to be deep at running back.
Felix has offers from every school under the sun but is looking at Penn State, Florida State, Miami and Florida.
Whichever school lands Jamie Felix, they will not only be getting a 5-star RB, but will also be getting a 5-star centerfielder and shortstop. That’s right, Jamie Felix is also one of the best baseball players in the country as well.
Felix has a bright future in front of him and has the temperament and personality to grab ahold of his opportunities and complete whatever dreams he may wish to attain.
In short, Jamie Felix is a great football player and athlete, but even more important is a great student and person.
Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch May 22
Loaded Ship
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It is only May but football is in the air.
I went out and observed the Brunswick High Blue and Gold game this past week and here are my 15 instant observations:
1)Brunswick will run the football on anyone they line up against this fall.
The running game looked special in the game. Kobe Hill, Ree Simmons, and Leon Charlton are a special group of running backs.
2)Jayden Drayton has a burst that I haven’t seen in a while on Altama Avenue.
Drayton played QB, WR, DB, and returned punts yesterday. This kid has the “It” factor and a different kind of football speed you don’t see a lot these days on the high school level.
3)Kobe Hill is back to 100%. Hill sprained his knee in the season opener last season, and just didn’t have his normal speed last year as he recovered.
Hill had a couple of TDs in the game, with one being a long TD run off of a screen pass where he ran away from a fast secondary. Chuckobe Hill is back folks.
4)Brunswick’s offensive line looked very good. LT Kanaya Charlton is a big-time player and Charlton and RT Jamal Meriweather look like human skyscrapers. This offensive line is huge folks.
5)Brunswick has size and depth on the defensive line. Kashawn Thomas should have a big season this fall.
Defensive line looked good at times. Defensive front put good pressure on the QB most of the day.
6)Leon Charlton has slimmed down and has gained some quickness. For some reason I feel like this kid is going to have a very good season this fall. Hill and Simmons get the headlines at RB, but there is just something about this kid. He makes plays.
7)Deep passing game struggled. It was very windy and some balls were overthrown. Short passing game and screen package looked good.
8)Jeffery Waye looked like an experienced QB yesterday. I see a lot of potential at the QB position.
Sutton Ellis led a couple of scoring drives, and Jayden Drayton looked good running the ball out of the QB position.
9)There is a lot of speed and depth in the BHS secondary. I like what I see on the backend of this defense.
10)There is talent at LB, but I want to see more consistent play from the group. BHS lost a ton of experience in this group to graduation. Size, speed, and numbers are there just need more consistency.
11)Kicking game could be a strength. Anthony Elvine boomed a couple of punts with the wind at his back. McClain Fineran looked solid on extra points.
12)BHS has some tall kids at WR. I like Kevin Thomas. He has bulked up and can run. Look for him to have a solid season.
13)Game was well attended. There seems to be a buzz about this team. You can sort of feel it in the air.
14)Don’t be surprised if BHS plays 2 QB’s this fall, and don’t be surprised if Sean Pender rotates them in and out on every play like Steve Spurrier did some while he was at Florida.
15)Long snapping is a big concern.
Sean Pender told me after the game that he thought BHS could have played a lot better especially in the passing game, but said we’ll fix that over the summer.
Personally, I thought they looked good. My blood runs Blue and Gold but folks that know me understand that.
Get ready Pirate fans this fall could be fun.
Knighting Up
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Gus Malzahn has a reputation for being one of college football’s top recruiters. Since he arrived in Orlando, Malzahn has been able to capitalize by landing several top transfers to UCF.
Malzahn emphasized recruiting is very important to play with the Power 5 programs. Since his arrival on February 15th, “The Gus Bus” hasn’t slowed down.
Linebacker Bryson Armstrong, an All American from Kennesaw State, is the latest player to commit to Malzahn and UCF. Armstrong was the Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2019.
Wide receiver Jordan Johnson transferred to UCF. Johnson was one of the most talented players in the country in the class of 2020 according to 247Sports Composite Rankings. He ranked as the number 37 overall player and the number 6 receiver in the country. Johnson makes the fourth former Notre Dame product to transfer to UCF since 2017.
Former Western Kentucky redshirt freshman defensive tackle Ricky Barber has transferred to The Knights. Barber was a 2020 Freshman All American by Football Writers Association of America this past season.
Big Kat Bryant announced he was transferring to UCF over Tennessee. During his time at Auburn, Bryant recorded 56 tackles, 10 sacks, seven passes defended, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery for the Tigers. SEC coaches named Bryant a Second Team All-SEC selection.
The defensive lineman became the third former Tiger to follow Malzahn to Orlando as running back Mark Anthony Richards and receiver Nate Craig Meyers each made the decision to continue their college careers at UCF.
Running back Isaiah Bower (Northwestern) kicker Ryker Casey (App State) and linebacker Hirkley Latu (BYU) round out the new Knights.
The transfer portal can be a double-edged sword. While it can help provide teams with much needed depth and experience, some worry that coaches are signing free agents rather than developing younger talent from high school recruiting.
Unlike former UCF coaches, Malzahn has been offering 4-star and 5-star recruits to UCF. He said it’s about building relationships and UCF is working on changing the narrative with recruits vs transfers.
Malzahn’s sites are set to get these talented players to UCF and be part of building something special. The best way to create franchise energy is to get plugged into the establishment and its actions.
Malzahn will inherit a program that went 6-4 this past season and quarterback Dillon Gabriel. Gabriel, one of the top returning sign callers in the country, should mean the Knights program start Malzahn’s tenure with a high floor.
Non-Conference games against Boise State and Louisville in September will give Coach Malzahn a chance to shine early against big names.
The Gus Bus is creating major synergy, so buckle up Knight fans it is going to be UCFast.
Raising The Level
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
As a fan of the NBA, I often get caught in conversation about how NBA Coaches are much less valuable than the infamous coaches of college basketball.
However, unlike college, the NBA coaches also have to fit into the culture of a ballclub just as much as their players do because they are the messengers between players in the locker room and executives.
Therefore, anyone still doubting the significance of NBA coaches should take a look at what Nate McMillan has done in Atlanta since taking over for Lloyd Pierce earlier this season.
Since Nate McMillan took over as Interim head coach for Atlanta, the Hawks are 25-11 and currently sitting with the fifth seed in the Eastern conference; clinching their first playoff berth since the 2016-2017 season.
Usually when teams turn things around midway through the season it is because they were aggressive in trades before the deadline. However, Atlanta has largely had the same roster since the beginning of the season with the exception of trading Rajon Rondo for Sixth Man Lou Williams. Clearly, allowing the numbers show that McMillan has turned this Hawks organization around and it seems to have the future looking bright for the next few seasons.
McMillan is not new to this; he has been coaching in the NBA since 1998 when he was with the Seattle SuperSonics and later became the Head Coach of the organization in 2000.
Since then, McMillan has since been named Head Coach for the Portland Trailblazers as well as the Indiana Pacers before becoming the interim Head Coach for Atlanta following Pierce’s departure.
McMillan’s most recent stint prior to Atlanta was with the Indiana Pacers, where he spent the past four seasons and had agreed to a two-year extension before getting fired after getting swept by the Miami Heat in the opening round of the playoffs a season ago.
The decision to fire McMillan came after being swept in three of the four playoff appearances and never being able to get to the second round during his time in Indiana.
However, McMillan ended his tenure with the Pacers with a 183-186 overall record involving many devastating injuries, like their All-Star Victor Oladipo.
Before McMillan became Interim Head Coach, the Hawks never seemed to have an organized offense and were just out there to have fun, often resulting in losing late in games and/or losing to teams that they should beat.
Since McMillan was given the promotion, the Hawks have seemingly been much better being consistent in late game situations as well as winning the winnable games that are needed to reach the playoffs.
Also, McMillan has done an outstanding job being able to coach around significant injuries to players with a big role by finding dependable production of Atlanta’s bench.
Throughout McMillan’s coaching career and into this season with the Hawks he has shown that he is able to win with just about any five guys on the floor proves that he should be in the Coach of the year race this season.
I know he has only been with the organization for a few months but the turn around the Hawks have seen since being 14-20 has been astonishing.
Even if McMillan isn’t a part of the discussion the least the Hawks organization could do is to hire him as Head Coach for the next few seasons and keep heading down this path he has forged for the young Hawks squad.
The Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch May 15
