Jason Jennings
Jason Jennings, who grew up in from Raleigh, is a reporter for WRAL and graduated from the University of Missouri. Jennings covers any one of a number of sports and teams and covered the Final Four for WRAL in 2008 and 2009.
By Jason Jennings
Nov 6, 2009
Points After
Virginia Tech 16 East Carolina 3
Pros: From the East Carolina perspective, the pregame atmosphere had all the feel of a big-time matchup. If you give Pirate fans a few more hours in a day to get…um, excited…for a high-profile opponent, the Dowdy-Ficklen faithful will show up with a “tastes great, less filling” energy.
Skip Holtz wanted to keep the game low-scoring like in previous contests against Virginia Tech. The ECU coach kind of got his wish. The 19 total points was the lowest scored in his three games against the Hokies. But not tallying a single touchdown wasn’t what he had in mind. The strategy also played into Virginia Tech’s style. The Hokies controlled the tempo.
The Pirates’ defense did a nice job of playing “bend but don’t break” in the first half. The score could have been much worse than 6-0 late in the second quarter after the Hokies marched inside the 25 yard line three different times.
Cons: As quarterback Patrick Pinkney said, the ECU offense “let our defense down.” Pinkney completed only 16 of 35 throws with one interception. If you ask Skip Holtz, the passing game looked embarrassing at times. Receivers ran wrong routes. The timing was constantly off. Anytime the Pirates’ O gained any momentum, it was wiped out with a turnover or a penalty.
Three
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By Jason Jennings
Sep 20, 2009
Points After
N.C. State 45 Gardner-Webb 14
Pros: No matter the competition, N.C. State will take the win. The Gardner-Webb game had a few “look who’s back” moments. Running back Toney Baker looks closer to his old self, gaining 107 total yards on 13 touches. Cornerback DeAndre Morgan played for the first time this year after missing the first two games with an ankle injury. Fans also gave wide receiver Donald Bowens a long ovation after he made his first catch. Bowens led the Pack in receiving yards in 2007, but he had not played since that season because of multiple injuries. Bowens caught two passes for 17 yards Saturday in backup duty.
Cons: Morgan and Bowens had to play because of injuries to the incumbent starters at their positions. Owen Spencer left late in the first half when he violently hit the ground coming down for a catch and suffered a concussion. Freshman cornerback Rashard Smith suffered a sprained ankle in the first half and also did not return. Smith started the game and had emerged as one of the Pack’s young bright spots on defense and on punt returns. After years of battling injuries in the Tom O’Brien era, State adds Smith and Spencer to an injured list that already includes LB Nate Irving, RB Jamelle Eugene, LT Jake Vermiglio, DE Jeff Rieskamp, DB Javon Walker and S Clem Johnson.
Turning Point: Once
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By Jason Jennings
Sep 13, 2009
Points After
N.C. State 65 Murray State 7
Pros: Everything that could have gone well for the Pack went exactly to plan. The defense created early turnovers and Russell Wilson led the offense to quick scores. The offense faced questions after the South Carolina loss, but Wilson spread the ball to different receivers and even tucked the ball under and ran when he had to. The reserves also showed promise.
Cons: It all happened versus Murray State. If State had a performance anything less than dominant, message boards would be lighting up in panic.
Turning Point: When this game was put on the schedule. To be more specific, it came on the first play from scrimmage when Murray State fumbled a hand off. State recovered and Wilson threw his first of three first quarter touchdowns. Game over.
Big Picture: It’s tough to get a read on the state of the Pack after an expected blowout. Most importantly for Tom O’Brien, he was able to get major playing time for his second-string players. James Washington showed signs he could be the starting tailback before the season is over. He scored three touchdowns in relief of injured Jamelle Eugene. Mike Glennon also played plenty, completing 6 of 7 passes.
Play of the game: State faced a 4th and 17 late in the second quarter on the Murray State 39. Punt? No.
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By Jason Jennings
Jul 30, 2009
So you can add David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez’s names to the list of 104 players who tested positive for performance enhancing drugs.
Is there a way to just release all the names at once?
Baseball will be better off for it.
Every few weeks, the news hits of another player whose name was leaked from this so-called confidential drug test in 2003. With every name released, steroids and PEDs becomes the talk of baseball.
We then forget about Albert Pujols’ Triple Crown chase, trade deadline talk, and tight division races (Who isn’t in the hunt for a playoff spot in the National League?). These are all conversation topics Bud Selig would rather have us talking about. Not steroids. Not again.
Instead, another name comes out from a test taken six years ago and we in the media have to ask the questions no player or manager wants to answer. In the wake of the Ortiz and Ramirez news, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen played the rare role of being the voice of reason when he told the Chicago media, "Can somebody in baseball, please, we're all begging people, get that stupid list out and move on. This is ridiculous, this is embarrassing. It's a joke. Whoever is there, get them out and that's it. We're going to continue to be alive; we're going to continue to play the game, but sitting here every freaking day, every manager, and every player responding to same question."
I’m
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By Jason Jennings
May 22, 2009
Before Game 1 of this Hurricanes-Penguins series, a middle-aged woman who was obviously a Sidney Crosby fan held a sign outside of Mellon Arena that read:
SID: I HAVE 2 DAUGHTERS...TAKE YOUR PICK!
After Game 2, maybe she should promise the other daughter to Evgeni Malkin.
The Canes had no answer for the (when motivated) most efficient 1-2 scoring combination of Malkin and Crosby. Unfortunately for Carolina, the players known as "Geno" and "Sid the Kid" are motivated. They combined for four goals and two assists in Game 2 while Malkin looked like a video game player with all the cheat codes.
Never before in these playoffs have the Canes looked so over-matched on pure skill.
When asked after the game what Carolina needs to do, a terse Erik Cole stared straight ahead, and with no eye contact answered concisely and angrily, "Play better."
It was one of the longer answers Cole gave all post-game.
The bigger issue for Carolina is can their best be enough?
In Game 1, the Canes came away satisfied with their effort and felt they didn't get the bounces in a 3-2 loss. One problem: the Penguins played a sluggish Game 1 and still came away victorious.
Game 2 was more indicative of the offense Pittsburgh can bring. Funny thing is, the Canes played pretty well for the first 25 minutes. They followed every early Pittsburgh score with a quick response of
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By Jason Jennings
May 19, 2009
The Carolina Hurricanes have had more than a few breaks go their way the last two months. One of those breaks so far is their aversion of breaking...bones. Entering the conference finals, the Canes were about as healthy as they have been since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006.
That was before Tuomo Ruutu and Erik Cole took early trips to the training table during Game 1 in Pittsburgh. The verdict on how severe their mysterious "lower-body injuries" really are could sway this series toward the Penguins.
When healthy, the Canes are far from the sixth-best team in the east, as their playoff seed would indicate. When healthy, its a fast-skating, high-scoring group that can challenge the scoring prowess of Pittsburgh. When healthy, Carolina can win the Stanley Cup.
During the post-Cup season when the Canes missed the playoffs, GM Jim Rutherford would constantly point Carolina's fortunes would have been different if not for the injuries. He's probably right. In 2006-07, the Canes set the team season record for man-games lost due to injury with 337. It didn't get better the next year when the figure hit 333. Whether it was Rod Brind'Amour injuring his knee, Cory Stillman undergoing shoulder surgery or Justin Williams breaking and tearing something new each month, the Canes couldn't keep a full NHL-worthy roster on the ice. As soon as one player returned, another one stepped through the injury revolving door. This led Rutherford to publicly
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By Jason Jennings
Apr 2, 2009
Heels lift the cup after the NCAA Elite Eight game at the FedExForum in Memphis, TN, Sunday March 29, 2009. Heels beat Sooners 72 to 60 to move on to the Final Four in Detroit.
Photo by Todd Melet
Every major sporting event hosts hordes of media members who — try as they might to be different — seem to come up with the same stories. The Final Four is no exception.
Here are a few of the many storylines that will crop up from our self-titled “Showdown in Motown.” Some are good. Some are obvious. Some will be repeated ad nauseum. When you see them on the air or in your newspaper, don’t be surprised.
1) One last chance for UNC.
This is one I actually do like. By “last chance,” I mean this is the final title shot for this group of Carolina players. Hansbrough, Green and Frasor joined the team right after the UNC mass exodus after the 2005 national championship. They were thrown into that proverbial fire (aka “played a lot of minutes”) immediately as freshmen.
This group, along with Lawson and Ellington, has had a career that is far from a failure no matter how you spin it.
Others don’t agree with me. Apparently two ACC Tournament championships, three ACC regular-season championships and two Final Fours aren’t enough. Sure, it will be unfinished business if UNC doesn’t win the title after entering the NCAA tournament as the favorite for three straight years.
But a failure? No way.
The seniors and (most likely, at least) Lawson are likely gone after the year. Roy Williams will have the Heels back in the Final Four
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By Jason Jennings
Feb 15, 2009
Experienced players like Rod Brind’Amour have witnessed through countless scoring streaks and droughts. That’s why the 20-year veteran fails to worry when Hurricanes only score one goal in a two game home span.
“Sometimes they come in spurts. Right now, nothing is going in,” Brind’Amour said, not that the captain knew how to solve this particular slump. “If you had the answer to that, you would be a very rich man.”
Coach Paul Maurice did not brush the Canes’ five-period scoring drought aside so easily. “We just don’t want to put the puck in the net or spend enough time [near the crease],” Maurice said.
Credit the Columbus defense on Saturday, too. The Blue Jackets blocked 29 Carolina shots, more shots than the Canes were able to get on goal (27).
A more glaring concern could be the constantly scrutinized Carolina defense for allowing two straight five goal games at home. “We have got to be a better home team,” said Maurice. “We’ve been outscored 10-1 in the last two home games. That’s just not acceptable.”
FAVORITE GAME MOMENTS:
1) In the second period, newest Hurricane Jussi Jokinen pushed former Cane Mike Commodore in a typical post-whistle shoving match in front of the net. To diffuse the situation, Chad LaRose jumped in and decided to hold back his longtime friend Commodore instead of Jokinen.
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By Jason Jennings
Oct 31, 2008
Jason Jennings
UNC has yet to play a game, but this season is set for never-ending storylines.
Before Thursday, it was the possibilities of an undefeated national championship for the Heels.
Now, Tyler Hansbrough’s indefinite leg injury has put the Tar Heels’ season in question.
While amazingly unfortunate, the timing is amazingly ironic. Carolina was picked as the unanimous preseason No. 1 in the coaches’ poll on the same day as the announcement of Hansbrough’s injury.
And this is an injury story that will NOT go away soon.
It gives us reporters the task of trying to play doctor and know how Hansbrough is really feeling (something none of us can do) and then speculate about the ramifications of the injury (something most of us are paid to do).
Hansbrough has a stress reaction to his shin, so Roy Williams will have to hold his star player off the practice court to avoid further injury. Do you think that will be easy? No way! The kid is a workout freak.
And remember Hansbrough’s love for following doctors’ instructions when he had to wear that mask for that broken nose back in March ’06? Yeah, that went well.
And when he does start to come back, you’ll hear this…
Is Tyler Hansbrough being rushed back too soon?
Is this an injury that can return because of how hard Tyler plays?
Is he in basketball shape because of all the time
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