Former college football star blogging from prision

Maurice Clarett looked to have a bright future ahead of him after leading the Ohio State Buckeyes to a National Championship in 2002. But things went downhill after that and now he is in prison due to armed robbery and gun possession charges and has been incarcerated since 2006. Recently, he started his own blog from prison and he talks about how he is becoming a better man and going back to school at Ohio University. It's really interesting so check it out by clicking here.

ATL Sports Guy on 790 the Zone

Hey Guys. I want to let you know that I am on Sports Radio 790 the Zone on Sundays from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. The five hour block is split into two shows. The first is Score Atlanta Sports Sunday with I.J. Rosenberg, Scott Janovitz, Fletcher Proctor and myself which runs from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. The second show is called Score Atlanta's Offical Visit which has the same cast of characters plus Alex Ewalt which goes from 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. Today was my first time on the Offical Visit show and I should be on there a few more times if not from now on. So check us out on 790 AM on the radio dial or you can listen on the 790 the Zone website.

Two possible Falcons signees

Free agency period is here and the Falcons have said that they won't be major players in free agency. Now that's not saying that they won't pick up any players, but don't look for any big-name players (like Albert Haynesworth) coming to Flowery Branch anytime soon. But if I had a say in the players that the Falcons should sign, here's two players that I would like to see in a Falcons uniform.

Jermaine Phillips- He had some great years with the Tampa Bay Bucs and he is the safety the Falcons are looking for. He is aggressive at the point of attack and can grab interceptions with 11 in his seven-year career. The only problem is that he is injury-prone as he missed five games last season due to two broken arms. But it would make sense for the Falcons to sign him because he's from Roswell, Ga and played at UGA. So Phillips would love to come back to the ATL especially with the future bright for the Falcons.

Angelo Crowell- I would put Channing Crowder here but he signed a multi-year deal to stay with the Miami Dolphins. Not a name Falcons fans will know right off the bat, but hadsome good year with the Buffalo Bills and can contribute right away and the Falcons are going to need that because Keith Brooking and Michael Boley will not be with the team next year.

It should be an interesting first couple of days and I'm looking forward to who the Falcons sign if they sign anybody.

Falcons Report- Brooking could come back and Haynesworth not in Falcons 2009 plans

Last week, the hot topic at Flowery Branch was Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff telling atlantafalcons.com that he is looking to trade the rights to quarterback Michael Vick. This week, free agency is drawing closer and Dimitroff and company are talking to guys such as Keith Brooking, Michael Boley Dominique Foxworth and Lawyer Miloy as they become free agents on the 27th.

If you were to ask me what's going to happen, as to who stays and who goes, I think that when it's all said and done, Brooking stays and Boley will be playing elsewhere in 2009. I think the reason that Brooking will be back is the fact that he is one of the leaders of the defense. Sure, he is not as fast as he once was and he blew an assignment late in the wild card playoff game against Arizona, but he doesn't make mental mistakes and it will help Curtis Lofton if Brooking is patrolling the weakside linebacker position. As for Boley, he did not have the breakout year that most fans expected, so he will probably shop around to test the waters.

Miloy will stay because he is the locker room leader for the birds and Foxworth proved that he can be a nickel corner. But don't expect Albert Hayenesworth anchoring the defensive line for the Falcons because Dimitroff said that they won't be major players when it comes to signing big free agents. This is good because they are sticking to their philosophy which is building through the draft and get quality veterans through free agency. That's how the New England Patriots did it and that's why they won titles in 2001, 2003 and 2004.

In one of my blogs next week I will predict the free agent the Falcons will try to sign. As mentioned earlier, they won't be big names, but I have some players in mind that can help the Falcons go deeper in the playoffs this season and for years to come.

Podcast 02-19-09

In this podcast, I talk about Ken Griffey Jr. and Michael Vick. Both have Atlanta ties but both won't play for any teams from Atlanta anytime soon. Click on the link above to take a listen.

Hawks Midseason Report

The second half of the 2008-09 NBA season is about to get underway and the Hawks are coming in with a 31-21 record, their best since 1997. So what do they need to do in order to keep up the intensity and try top catch up with the Orlando Magic and earn the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference? Well, here's what I think the Hawks need to do in order to have a successful end to their season.

1. Stay Healthy- The break helps because it gives players a time to rest their bodies. Josh Smith Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, Mike Bibby and Al Horford have missed time due to injuries and those are the starting five for the Hawks.

2. Protect Philips- This goes for any NBA team trying to make the playoffs and the Hawks have done a good job winning at home with a 19-6 record which is the fourth best in the conference. They only have one more home game this month as they take on the Miami Heat on the 27th, but after that, they have 12 home games in March including a nationally televised game again the Cavs on March 1 and on the 29th they go up againt Kobe and the Lakers. So the Hawks have an opportunity to gain so ground.

3. MAKE FREE THROWS- Any time I watch a Hawks game, it seems like they struggle to make shots from the charity stripe and lose games because of it. They are 29th in the league in free throws shooting 73.9%. But guess who is ranked 30th? It's none other that the Orlando Magic shooting 72%. I think the reason for this is both teams have high 3pt percentage with the Hawks in 11th place and the Magic are atop the league making 40 percent of their shots beyond the arc.

I think if the Hawks can do these three things, they can make some noise at the end of the season and lock up at least the No. 4 spot. Johnson and Bibby will keep doing what the have been doing so Smith, Horford and Williams just need to get better. Regardless of what happens, the city of Atlanta should get excited because the Hawks have a chance to do something special this spring.

A-Rod on roids, Favre retires and Chris Brown beating up Rihanna?

Well, nobody is safe when it comes to baseball players. Earlier this week there were reports that Alex Rodriguez tested positve for steriod use in 2003. At first, he denied it when he was interviewed by Katie Couric. But a couple of days ago, Rodriguez admitted to ESPN that he did use steroids from 2001-2003 when he was with the Texas Rangers. Now, in 2003 he did win the AL MVP award and was the homerun leader.

So here's my question - Is he a Hall-of-Famer? The answer is yes because if he only used steriods from 2001-2003 and he was clean from 2004 to present time, I think the numbers would dictate he would still make it to Cooperstown. He made a mistake and he lied to the public about making the mistake. But it goes to show you that anyone that is accused of using steriods, can you trust a player when they say they didn't do it? And if a player say that they didn't use steroids and they really didn't, will the fans believe the player? Those are a few questions to think about.

Brett Favre announced that he will retire and it looks as if he is really hanging it up this time. I know that a lot of people don't like Favre for various reasons. But I love Favre for what he did on the field. Sure, he wasn't as smart as Tom Brady and as accurate as Peyton Manning, but what he did was played the game like the way it should be played. He gave 100 precent every time he stepped on the field and was a absolute warrior. He threw over 300 interceptions but threw for over 400 touchdowns. He won the most games out of any quarterback and has a Super Bowl ring so he is certainly a first ballot Hall-of-Famer. Congratulations Brett on a great career and good luck on your retirement.

Somebody who I won't congratulate is Chris Brown because there are reports comming out that he physically assaulted his girlfriend Rihanna. Both were scheduled to be at the Grammys and both canceled at the last minute. Brown's songs have been pulled from radio stations and he will no longer do the DoubleMint and Got Milk commercials. If he really did this to Rihanna, I lost a lot of respect for him and he needs get some help before he even thinks about music, TV or film.