PAGE 10, THE BEHREND BEACON, JANUARY 21,2000
NATIONAL SPORTS
Rams eager for Bucs' Challen
by Rod Kloeckner
Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 17, 20(R)
ST. LOUIS - Tight end Ernie Conwell savored St. Louis'
49-37 playoff victory over Minnesota for about five
minutes Sunday before thoughts of the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers tilled his head.
"It's hard not to be thinking about Tampa Bay," said
Conwell of the Rams' opponent Sunday in the NFC
Championship game. "We're going to enjoy the fact that
we get to play next Sunday. Knowing that alone is enough
to hold most guys over, but I think a lot of guys
including myself can't wait to get into work this week
and get ready to go.
"I'm going to go in Monday and Tuesday, and I'll be
lifting and running and watching film trying to get a jump
on them. They already have an extra day on us to get
themselves ready and prepared. -
The Rams (14-3) and Buccaneers (12-5) will meet at
3:15 p.m. at the Trans World Dome, with the winner
earning a berth to Super Bowl XXXI V in Atlanta on Jan.
30.
The game is a rematch of the 1979 NEC Championship
game, won 9-0 by the Los Angles Rams. That historical
fact, or St. Louis' impressive victory over the Vikings,
mattered little to defensive tackle Ray Agnew.
"It was sweet to win it, hut we're staying focused,"
Agnew said. "That's not our ultimate goal is to beat
Minnesota. That's the first step in where we're trying to
get to be. and that's champions of this league."
Tampa Bay advanced to the NE( • title game with a 14-
13 victory over Washington on Saturday, rallying from
13-0 second-half deficit with a pair of touchdowns set up
by Washington turnoveis.
For the most part, Tampa Bay has survived on its superior
defense, led by the NFL Defensive Player of the Year
Warren Sapp ,all season. They've proven that an effective
blend of sporadic offense and consistently menacing
defense can he successful.
In the win Saturday, Tampa Bay's third-tanked defense
shut down Washington's second-ranked offense, holding
Washington to 157 total yards, including just 46 on the
ground. Washington averaged 372.8 yards per game and
27.7 points per game during the regular season.
Titans upset Colts for AFC championship
by Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 16, 2001)
INDIANAPOLIS - Jeff Fisher was doing some pre-game
math Sunday morning. The Tennessee Titans' coach was
trying to calculate just how many points his team would
need to heat the Indianapolis Colts in their divisional
playoff battle.
He didn't lack for confidence in his defense. But hey,
they weren't playing the Cincinnati Bengals or the
Pittsburgh Steelers or the Baltimore Ravens.
It was the Colts and their lethal-weapon offense. It was
Peyton Manning and Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison.
It was an offensive line that had given up a league-low 14
sacks.
"I thought that if we were able to tackle and play great
defense, somewhere in the 24 to 27 (point) range would
get it done, - Fisher said. "I definitely thought we'd need
more than 19. It's a credit to our defense that we won
with 19."
The Titans held the Colts and their explosive 26.4 points
per-game offense to a touchdown and three Mike
Vanderjagt field goals as they earned a spot in next week's
AFC Championship Game with a 19-16 victory.
They did an impressive job of muzzling the Colts' Pro
Bowl-bound triplets. They pressured Manning into a
season-worst 19-for-43 performance, held James, the
NFL's rushing champion, to 56 yards on 20 carries.
Harrison, who led the AFC in receiving yards, was held
to 65 yards on five catches.
"Our whole defense played well, - Fisher said. "We
attacked their run game. We tackled well. You have to
tackle against them with the type of people they put out
there on offense.
"Our approach going in was to play man-to-man
coverage. We wanted to challenge their receivers, and be
close when the ball was caught. They did an excellent job
all season of attacking zone defenses. We didn't want to
give them opportunities to run after the catch."
Ruining back Eddie George, who rushed for 106 yards
in last week's come-from-behind 22-16 first-round playoff
win over Buffalo, rang up 162 on 26 carries Sunday,
including a huge 68-yard third-quarter touchdown run that
gave the Titans a lead they never relinquished.
The Titans also got a major assist from the league's new
instant-replay system, which erased an 87-yard fourth
quarter punt return by the Colts' Terrence Wilkins when it
was determined that Wilkins had stepped out of bounds.
"We kind of won it our way," said Fisher, whose team
needed a controversial last-second kickoff return for a
touchdown by Kevin Dyson last week to get by the Bills.
"It wasn't pretty. But it's kind of the way we've done things
the last couple of weeks."
The Titans face the Jaguars in Jacksonville next Sunday
at 12:35 (CBS-TV) for the AFC title.
George and defense. Defense and George. That's how
the Titans went 13-3 this season. That's how they beat
next week's opponent, the Jaguars, twice. And that's how
they beat the Colts. They ran the ball 33 times and threw
it just 24. Quarterback Steve McNair had all of 112 passing
yards.
•]b
TMS CAMPUS
Rams running back Marshall Faulk runs past Viking defenders for a touchdown in the first quarter making
the score 14-3. The Rams meet Tampa Bay next week in the NFC Championship game after defeating the
Minnesota Vikings 49-37.
"They have a great defense," said Rams wide receiver
Ricky Proehl. "It's going to be a great challenge for us,
but we're excited. We're a very confident football team
offensively, and they pose a lot of great match-ups for
The Buccaneers' defense will be trying to stop the
highest-scoring offense in the NFL, one that strafed
Minnesota for 476 yards and 49 points Sunday.
"I know they have a good front seven on defense and
have a young quarterback who's been making plays," said
wide receiver Tony Horne. "But, they have to come to
our dome and try and stop us. Whatever happens,
happens."
Tampa Bay's offense is triggered by rookie quarterback
Shaun King, a 22-year-old native of neighboring St.
Petersburg who is trying to become the first rookie at his
Mora's biggest concern going
TMS CAMPUS
Titans' running back Eddie George scampers 68 yards for a touchdown on into Sunday's playoff game was
the third play of the second half to lead the Titans to a 19-16 win over the his defense's ability to stop
Indianapolis Colts. The Tennessee Titans meet the Jacksonville Jaguars next George. He respected
week in the AFC Championship game. Tennessee's defense, but didn't
expect them to throttle Manning
and Co. as effectively as they did.
"We had a hard time coming up with anything big or
getting any big chunks of yardage," Mora said. "We have
a very, very young offense that is not near what it is going
to be at some point. Sometimes, you do things and expect
it to happen every game. Today, we just got outplayed by
a better football team."
Got outplayed, but still might have won if the field were
an inch or two wider. Early in the fourth quarter, with the
Colts trailing, 16-9, Wilkins took a Craig Hentrich punt
and returned it 87 yards to the Tennessee 4-yard line.
The officials didn't notice that Wilkins had stepped out
of bounds at the Colts' 33. But the Titans' bench did. They
alerted Fisher, who used a replay challenge, and the ball
was brought back.
"That was a huge swing," Mora said. "To have the
opportunity to have the ball on the (4-yard) line and have
to move back to the 33 hurt our momentum. But it was
the right call. He stepped out. There's nothing we could
do about it."
The Colts finally found the end zone late in the fourth
quarter when Manning bolted 15 yards for a touchdown
with 1:51 left to make it 19-16. Out of timeouts, their only
hope was an onside kickoff. But Titans wide receiver
Yancy Thigpen caught the ball and they were able to run
out the clock.
"In the playoffs, all it takes is one or two big plays
without giving up a couple of big plays, and you should
be in position to win," said McNair, who didn't do much
with his arm, but did rush for 35 yards, including a couple
of key third-down runs.
"Eddie's touchdown run was the one and only big play
today, and fortunately, it came on our side of the ball."
"That's our philosophy," Fisher said. "We run the
football. There's no secret there. We run the football when
we're not supposed to be able to run it. When everybody
thinks you're going to run it."
The Colts' ability to stop George was a major concern
for Coach Jim Mora going into the game. They had
allowed a far-too-generous 4.2 yards per carry this season
and were without their top tackler, linebacker Cornelius
Bennett, who injured his knee in the final regular-season
game against Buffalo.
But they held George to a mostly harmless 38 yards on
nine carries in the first half as the Colts clung to a 9-6
lead, compliments of three Vanderjagt field goals.
Then, on the third play of the second half, George took
a handoff from McNair and sprinted 68 yards down the
middle of the field for a go-ahead touchdown.
"It was a counter," George said. "We hadn't run it all
game. But at the half, we made a decision to use it. The
middle of the field was wide open. I just took off."
Said Fisher: "I talked to Eddie before the game. I told
him that we took him (in the first round of the '95 draft)
to win games like this."
If the Titans' defense hadn't been able to muzzle
Manning, James and Harrison as well as they did, they
wouldn't have won this one, even with George's 162
rushing yards.
Manning, who had thrown for 4,135 yards this season,
had 227 Sunday, but averaged a season-low 5.2 yards per
attempt.
The Titans didn't sack him a single time or intercept
any passes, but they put enough consistent pressure to force
him to throw sooner than he wanted. They also used mostly
man-for-man coverage to reduce the Colts' opportunities
for extra yardage after the catch.
"That's our style of defense," Titans strong safety Blaine
Bishop said. "We line up and play mano a mano. We do
that against everybody. We wanted to press them, get in
position to get his team into the Super Bowl.
Bruising fullback Mike Alstott and speedy tailback
Warrick Dunn form Tampa Bay's backfield.
"I have seen them some," said St. Louis coach Dick
Vermeil. "I have seen them look awfully good, and I have
seen them not look too good. I watched a tape before
playing Detroit when Detroit took them apart, but that is
not typical of the type of football team they are.
"They are a very sound, solid defensive team with a
big, strong running attack that can pound on you and they
will he a good football team."
Rams quarterback Kurt Warner expects a tough fight.
"I know they're great, - Warner said. "They have the
best defense in the league. It will be a great test our
strength against their strength. It's going to be fun."
Super Bowl Sunday
January 30, 2000
6:00 ET (ABC)
their face. We felt our style was
conducive to beating them."
Manning is a master of the
play-action pass. But the Colts
were able to foil it by stopping
the run. James averaged just 2.8
yards per carry. He also was
ineffective as a pass receiver,
catching just one pass for 8
yards.
"We matched up one of our
defensive backs on him (rookie
cornerback Donald Mitchell) on
third down," Fisher said. "We
tried to avoid the linebacker
match-up he usually gets. He's
too fast to cover with a
linebacker."
No Shock:
Dolphins
make changes
by John Mullin
Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 17, 2000
Dave Wannstedt began his second turn as an NFL head
coach Sunday with one particular resolution: to avoid
repeating some of the same mistakes that doomed him in
his six years as coach of the Bears.
How well he succeeds will be one of the NFL's most
closely watched sagas over the next three years, the length
of Wannstedt's new contract with the Miami Dolphins.
"Whatever business you're in, you're better doing it
the second time," Wannstedt said Sunday. "Having a strong
staff and being real strong in the personnel area is real
important. That was the thing that got me in trouble in
Chicago.
"We didn't have the supporting cast in certain areas that
we have here."
The NFL's sixth coaching shakeup this year became
the first to produce a replacement, with Wannstedt
succeeding good friend Jimmy Johnson.
Johnson, 56, resigned less than 24 hours after the worst
loss in franchise history, a 62-7 defeat in the divisional
playoffs to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Johnson's decision gradually was reached over the last
couple of weeks, culminating in the aftermath of the
Jacksonville loss. Talks Sunday morning with Dolphins
Chairman Wayne Huizenga resolved any remaining
questions about the Wannstedt succession.
"This time is final and forever," Johnson said before
giving his unqualified endorsement to Wannstedt. "Dave
is a fantastic football coach and people are going to find
out how great he is," Johnson said.
"When you get right down to it, he is a better football
coach than what I am. He has got the passion for the game.
He loves dealing with the players and I really believe the
players love dealing with him."
Wannstedt, 47, was hired by Miami Jan. 14, 1999, as
assistant head coach.
He was promoted to Johnson's job with a contract one
year shorter than the standard for head coaches and initially
will exercise much of the same authority Johnson had in
personnel.
While personnel decisions in the draft and free agency
were the chief causes for Wannstedt's failure with the
Bears, he took the Miami job with the same assurances
that he would have the dominant say in personnel as he
did initially in Chicago.
The difference is that Miami has a personnel department
with the structure and staffing denied to Wannstedt and
personnel director Rod Graves from the start of free agency
in 1993.
"He just didn't have the support," Dolphins President
Eddie Jones said.
"I'll be in the middle of it as will the coaches,"
Wannstedt said. "When Jimmy asked me to come down
here, it was because of the organization and the way Wayne
runs things. It gives you all the resources to be the very
best."
The Miami move is expected to save the Bears as much
as $1 million, the going rate for head coach salaries.
The Bears owe Wannstedt $1.3 million in 2000, the final
year of his Chicago contract, minus whatever salary he
receives in a new position.
Wannstedt coached the Bears from 1993 to '9B and
compiled a 41-57 overall record, including 1-1 in the
playoffs. He was voted NFC Coach of the Year after the
Bears reached the playoffs following the 1994 season and
was second runner-up in NFL Coach of the Year voting.
His 41 wins are third most in Bears history behind George
Halas (324) and Mike Ditka (112).
As he did when he took over the Bears, Wannstedt faces
a quarterback decision in Miami.
When he arrived in Chicago in 1993, Jim Harbaugh
was a free agent and the favorite of then-President Michael
McCaskey, who gave Harbaugh a four-year contract worth
$l3 million, including a $5 million signing bonus.
Now Wannstedt must deal with the future of Dan
Marino. Huizenga met privately with the 38-year-old
quarterback last week to discuss Wannstedt, with whom
_ .
Marino has a far better relationship than with Johnson.
Marino and Wannstedt both played at the University of
Pittsburgh and are western Pennsylvania natives with their
Pittsburgh accents still firmly in place.
Marino's favorable opinion of Wannstedt carried
considerable weight with Huizenga, who had begun
assembling a list of possible successors to Johnson a month
ago. Wannstedt said he will meet with Marino this week
to discuss both his own plans and those of the NFL's all
time leading passer.
"It's going to be Danny's decision," Wannstedt said of
Marino's future with the Dolphins.
Wannstedt has admitted that one of his major mistakes
when he took over in Chicago was not committing to
younger players, instead staying too long with aging
veterans from the Super Bowl XX team.
Although the Dolphins are one of only three teams to
go to the playoffs each of the past three seasons, Wannstedt
has a mandate to make changes wherever he determines
necessary
"We're going to look at everything," Wannstedt said.
"Obviously we struggled in some areas on offense. We'll
look at what we're doing on offense and evaluate that.
That will probably be our first focus."
Wannstedt had several job opportunities as a defensive
coordinator after his Dec. 28, 1998, firing by the Bears
but chose to join Johnson. Huizenga agreed to Johnson
hiring Wannstedt barely two weeks after Wannstedt was
fired by McCaskey. That Wannstedt would succeed
Johnson was expected; the only question appeared to be
when. That time came Sunday.
"I guess you might say it's my time," said Johnson. "I've
had my time in the sun. I've had my time in the spotlight
and now it's time to spend time with my family."