Henry Frazier III wins Eddie Robinson Award
Prairie View A&M coach Henry Frazier III was named the 23rd winner of the Eddie Robinson Award Thursday night at The Sports Network’s Football Championship Subdivision Awards Banquet, held at the Chattanooga Convention Center on the eve of the NCAA Division I Football Championship title game.
Frazier is the first coach of a Southwestern Athletic Conference team, or a Historically Black College or University (HBCU) to win the Robinson Award, which is presented annually to the top coach in FCS. Robinson, the legendary Grambling State coach, spent much of his career in the SWAC.
“It is a humbling honor,” said Frazier. “It’s a great honor to be considered the top coach in your conference and it’s an even greater honor to be considered the top coach in the country.”
Taking over a program best known for losing an NCAA-record 80 consecutive games from 1989-98, Frazier led the Panthers to a perfect 7-0 conference mark, the SWAC West Division title and their first-ever berth in the SWAC championship game since the title contest was introduced in 1999.
Frazier is 36-27 at Prairie View and has gone 25-5 in the past three years. Prairie View completed its season with a thrilling, 30-24 SWAC title game victory over Alabama A&M. The Panthers hadn’t won a SWAC championship since 1964, and 2009 marked the team’s second consecutive 9-1 season.
“When we took over at Prairie View, if there were 119 teams, we were the 119th team in the country,” Frazier said.
In 2008, Prairie View also beat both Grambling and Southern in the same year for the first time in 35 seasons, and posted its first nine-win campaign since 1953, a feat they duplicated this season.
The 2009 season marks the first time the Panthers have had three consecutive winning years since legendary PVAM coach W.J. Nicks ran off nine straight such seasons from 1957-65.
Frazier also coached the Panthers to the No. 18 spot in the final regular season Sports Network poll, the highest ranking Prairie View has ever held. PVAM was ranked 25th last season, the first time the Panthers had ever made a poll appearance.
In the second-closest balloting in Robinson Award history, Frazier received 24 first-place votes out of the 125 ballots cast by a panel of sports information directors and select media who regularly cover FCS. He picked up 237 points to edge J.C. Harper of Stephen F. Austin by two points. (Full voting information is available at sportsnetwork.com)
Jerry Moore of Appalachian State won by one point over Craig Bohl of North Dakota State in 2006.
The Sports Network established the Eddie Robinson Award in 1987. Past recipients of this prestigious honor include current FCS coaches, two-time winner Mickey Matthews of James Madison, Northern Iowa skipper Mark Farley, New Hampshire’s Sean McDonnell, Villanova’s Andy Talley, Mike Ayers of Wofford and Elon’s Pete Lembo, when he won the coveted award with Lehigh.
Source: The Sports Network
Phillies to release Legends of the Fall
Compelling 2009 Season Relived in New Phillies Video Yearbook DVD
The Phillies have announced the release of Legends of the Fall: The 2009 Phillies Video Yearbook DVD. This compelling feature gives fans the chance to relive a season that was memorable in so many ways.
Legends of the Fall is narrated by Raul Ibanez, a player who found out first-hand the glory of playing in this era of Phillies baseball. Through his eyes fans are able to relive all the stellar performances….all the walk-off wins…and all the excitement of the post season.
“It’s the goal of every baseball player to go deep into the season, to be part of the last team standing, and to become one of the legends of the fall,” said Dan Stephenson, the film’s writer and producer. “This DVD captures the journey of a team that once again forged itself into the pages of Phillies history.”
At 70 minutes in length, this DVD also features more than two hours of bonus footage, including a special tribute to Harry Kalas.
Bonus Features:
– A Tribute to Harry Kalas
– The Harry Kalas Memorial Service – Citizens Bank Park, April 18, 2009
– The White House Visit
– “The Pen” – An Inside Look at the MLB Network Production
– Celebrate – The Pennant Winning Celebration, including on-field Ceremony
– Legendary Inning – The complete bottom of the ninth, Game Four NLCS
– A Quarter Century of Success – The 25th Anniversary of the ALS Association and The Phillies
– Great Plays of 2009
HOW TO PURCHASE
Legends of the Fall is now available for pre-sale at phillies.com and through the Official Phillies Merchandise Catalog at 1-877-GO-PHILS, for a suggested retail price of $17.99. The DVD will also be sold at the Majestic Clubhouse Store at Citizens Bank Park as well as local Modell’s Sporting Goods Stores beginning Thursday, December 17.
Source: Philadelphia Phillies
Gabe Paul: Four-time Baseball Hall of Fame nominee has numbers in his favor. Decision on his induction is on 12-6-2009
The Yankee Princess, written by Jennie Paul tells the inside story behind Gabe Paul’s NY Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros in the context of their love/hate story in this first ever biography on her Dad.
Four-time Baseball Hall of Fame Nominee Gabe Paul owned and ran four major league baseball teams and is directly responsible for as many pennants–3 for the NY Yankees and one for the Cincinnati Reds. The Father Daughter connection in this love hate story about a woman coming into her own as her Dad was making his dream to own and run a winning baseball team come true, combined with the inside story on George Steinbrenner, Reggie Jackson, Howard Cosell, Billy Martin and Catfish Hunter make a great story that will appeal to baseball fans, reporters, historians, and men who relate better to baseball than their daughters.
Peter Golenbock will be writing the foreword for The Yankee Princess, written by Jennie Paul with Jody Lynn Smith, and it is expected to be released during Spring Training 2010. It will correct many misconceptions about what really happened when Gabe Paul helped the Yankees reverse a 15-year losing streak with two successive World Series wins and one championship loss to his first team, the Reds. This legacy-making accomplishment would not be repeated until the year he died and Joe Torre secured his first of three wins.
Thoroughly researched and inclusive of first-hand real life accounts, conversations, personal letters and newspaper clippings, it will win over the fans and help fathers and daughters find new ways to accept each others’ strengths and weaknesses, while enjoying one of America’s greatest past times.
Gabe Paul is widely known for his uncanny ability in filling seats and running teams like the Indians and the Reds on a cleat string, while leading the way in trades that won ballgames and rule changes that made the sport what it is today. He was an advocate for night baseball, the dissolution of the reserve clause, dividing the leagues into divisions, allowing designated hitters and requiring players to bring their gloves in from the field. Learn More at http://www.theyankeeprincess.com/
Source: TheYankeePrincess.com
30th Anniversary Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon
Random Lottery To Open December 1, 2009
The Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon will celebrate its 30th year as one of the premier triathlons in the world on Sunday, May 2, 2010. For 30 years, this legendary race has attracted professional and amateur athletes from around the world with its challenging course including the infamous swim from Alcatraz Island to the shore, the hilly bike ride and grueling run through San Francisco. The world’s leading sports, entertainment and media company IMG Worldwide once again promises a stellar race ideal for athletes and spectators alike.
“The Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon is my favorite race,” said Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon Three-Time Winner and Professional Triathlete Andy Potts. “IMG puts on a first class race that attracts top athletes from around the world and takes place on a truly unique course only made possible in a great city like San Francisco. I look forward to participating in the 30th Annual Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon and being a part of its ongoing history.”
Similar to the world-renowned Kona Ironman race, the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon is one of the hardest triathlons to get into and one of only a few triathlons to be nationally televised. Interested participants can qualify to participate by placing in one of the Escape TO Alcatraz Triathlon Series races: Triathlon de Gerardmer France, September 5, 2009; The Triathlon at Pacific Grove, September 11-13, 2009; Jarden Westchester Triathlon, September 29, 2009; San Diego Triathlon, March 20-21, 2010; and GateWay to the Bay, April 10-11, 2010, or by entering the random lottery beginning on December 1, 2009. Due to the race’s extreme popularity, the lottery fills up quickly, with thousands of hopeful participants attempting to secure one of the few coveted spots. Additionally, top men and women from the previous Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon automatically qualify for the race.
“From the London Triathlon – the world’s largest, to the brand new Abu Dhabi International Triathlon, The Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon is one of nearly a dozen renowned triathlons owned and produced by IMG,” said IMG’s Senior Vice President James Leitz. “IMG is dedicated to the sport of Triathlon and developing world class experiences for athletes around the world.”
Featuring a 1.5 mile swim from Alcatraz Island to the shore, an 18-mile bike and an 8-mile run through San Francisco, this race is considered one of the most difficult triathlons in the world. More than 2,000 amateur and professional athletes from dozens of countries will attempt to conquer the icy cold swim from Alcatraz Island to the shore, the hilly bike ride and grueling run through San Francisco for the 30th Annual Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon.
The 30th Anniversary Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon will take place on Sunday, May 2, 2010, at 8 a.m., in San Francisco. The public is invited to watch the race and attend the free two-day Fitness Festival & Expo Saturday and Sunday. (Please note, the date has changed from May 30, to May 2, 2010, due to a Doyle Drive construction project and Memorial Day Weekend traffic congestion.) The Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon is owned and produced by IMG Worldwide with race direction provided, in part, by Premier Event Management.
www.escapefromalcatraztriathlon.com
Source: IMG Worldwide
Panasonic to deliver full lineup of HD equipment to Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games
Initiative Is Panasonic’s Largest-Ever Equipment Supply for the Winter Olympic Games Making Vancouver the First HD Winter Olympic Games
Panasonic Corporation, the Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment category for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, announced it is providing a full lineup of High-Definition (HD) equipment to support the broadcast of the Olympic Games; delivering the largest supply of AV equipment for any Winter Games in the company’s history. Through cooperation with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) and Olympic Broadcasting Services Vancouver (OBSV), Panasonic will supply its HD video equipment to the competition venues and broadcasting locations, making the Vancouver Games the first Olympic Winter Games to be broadcast completely in HD format.
Following Beijing 2008, all international video signals for the 2010 Winter Games will be produced and distributed in HD format from the International Broadcasting Center (IBC) to rights-holding broadcasters around the world. In addition, the HD video signals will also be used for the first time for display on the LED Large Screen Display Systems in the competition venues and BC Place Stadium where the Opening and Closing Ceremonies will take place; making the 2010 Winter Games the first “HD Olympic Winter Games” with all the Olympic videos to be delivered completely in HD. At BC Place Stadium in downtown Vancouver, Panasonic will install three LED video screens with a total display area of 243 m(2) (approximately 1.4 times the size used in the Torino 2006 Main Stadium). Together with Panasonic’s professional sound systems and Plasma Display Panels, the Panasonic AV systems will deliver spectacular images to enhance the excitement and spectacle of the Opening Ceremonies.
Panasonic’s DVCPRO HD has already been selected as the recording format for the 2010 Winter Games. The company will deliver large numbers of broadcasting equipment such as the P2HD series, a solid-state memory news gathering system. The 2010 Winter Games is the ninth Olympic Games in which Panasonic’s digital technology has been used as the recording format.
In addition, Panasonic will support a safe and secure Olympic operation by providing high-quality picture and high-sensitivity surveillance camera systems for the indoor and outdoor Olympic facilities, the surrounding areas and highways.
In cooperation with VANOC and Bell, a Premier National Partner and the Exclusive Telecommunications Partner for the 2010 Winter Games, Panasonic will also provide an HD Video Conference System as a means to link the two Athletes’ Villages in Vancouver and Whistler for the first time. The Panasonic system combines HD video conference units with Full HD Plasma Display Panels and HD camcorders which will link the Villages with H.264 high-resolution images and high sound quality resistant to audio cutoff. The Panasonic HD Video Conference System allows coaches and athletes to communicate without traveling between the Villages by providing vivid images and clear sound that make them feel as if they were in the same room. This system will also be used for the welcome ceremony of the Villages to unite athletes. This will not only save time and money required for the athletes to move between the Villages, but also help reduce CO2 emissions, ensuring an effectively-run Olympic Games with environmental considerations.
Source: Panasonic Corporation