Donald Trump: NFL people thankful he signed criminal justice bill
President Donald Trump claimed that “a lot of people” from the NFL have been calling and thanking him for signing legislation addressing concerns with the criminal justice system. Trump also said during an interview broadcast Sunday that he and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell have set aside their differences over players kneeling during the national anthem. Trump relentlessly criticized the practice as being disrespectful to the American flag and he faulted Goodell for not doing enough to stop it. Players saw kneeling during the “Star-Spangled Banner” as a prime opportunity to heighten public awareness of how minorities are treated by the criminal justice system. The president pivoted to the new criminal justice law when he was asked if he thought the players who knelt had a point, and whether he was sensitive to their concerns that most victims of police violence are black. Trump said the legislation was the product of years of effort dating to before he took office. “And I got it done and I’ve been, you know, really, a lot of people in the NFL have been calling and thanking me for it,” Trump said in the interview broadcast during CBS’ Super Bowl pre-game show. “They have been calling and thanking, you know, that people have been trying to get that taken care of and it’s now signed into law.” The law gives judges more discretion when sentencing some drug offenders and will boost prisoner rehabilitation. Trump then segued to his stance on kneeling during the anthem, without addressing the original question. “I think that when you want to protest I think that’s great. But I don’t think you do it at the sake of our flag, at the sake of our national anthem. Absolutely,” he said. The White House did not respond to emailed requests for information on which NFL figures have reached out to the president. Asked whether he and Goodell had set aside their differences over kneeling, Trump said: “I think so … You have to respect our flag and our country. I want that as president. And I’d want that as a citizen and I have a very good relationship.” Trump viewed Sunday’s matchup between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams from the comfort of his private golf club in West Palm Beach. Upon arrival, he and his wife, Melania, were treated to a mini-concert by the Florida Atlantic University Marching Band. Trump said in the interview that he expected the Patriots to win a sixth Lombardi Trophy — and they did, 13-3 — and visit the White House. The team is owned and coached by his friends, Bob Kraft and Bill Belichick, respectively. He credited “great chemistry” for the team’s success. Trump also complained in the interview about the New Orleans Saints’ loss to the Rams in January’s NFC title game. Game officials failed to call interference or roughness penalties when a Rams player delivered a helmet-to-helmet hit on a Saints receiver in the game’s crucial final minutes. The Rams won in overtime, advancing to meet the Patriots at the Super Bowl in Atlanta while the league acknowledged a blown “no-call.” A federal judge later rejected a legal challenge by two Saints ticketholders seeking a do-over playoff game. Trump blamed the outcome on a “bad call.” “It’s a shame that we couldn’t have seen that game finished out, because that was a beautiful pass. And it was a perfect pass. And he was not just interfered with, he was, he was really hit hard,” the president said. “So it’s a shame that that had to happen. Who really knows what would have happened in the end?” He said the Saints would have been in a good position to have won the conference title. “But it is what it is. It was a bad call. I don’t think anybody denies it was a bad call,” Trump said. “Maybe it was a terrible call.” … Follow Darlene Superville on Twitter:http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap Republished with permission from the Associated Press
Texas Congressman cites Alabama civil rights events as he defends NFL players taking a knee
The internet is abuzz with a video of Democratic U.S. Rep. from Texas, Beto O’Rourke, who’s invoking Alabama civil rights history in his quest to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. During a town hall meeting in Houston last week, O’Rourke was asked by an attendee whether he thought NFL players who choose take a knee during the national anthem are disrespecting the U.S. military and American people. “My short answer is no, I don’t think it’s disrespectful,” O’Rourke answered. “Here is my longer answer – but I’m gonna try to make sure I get this right, because I think it’s a really important question. And reasonable people can disagree on this issue. Let’s begin there, and it makes them no less American to come down on a different conclusion on this issue. Right? You can feel as the young man does, you can feel as I do, you are every bit as American all the same.” O’Rourke went on to reference the 1963 Ku Klux Klan bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala. that killed the girls. Along with the March 7, 1965 march across Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala. When a group of roughly 525 African American protesters planned to cross the bridge on their civil rights march to Montgomery to demand the right to vote. At the bridge they where they were met by more than 50 state troopers and a few dozen men on horseback. When the demonstrators refused to turn back, they were brutally beaten, leaving at least 17 hospitalized, and 40 others injured. “Those who died in Philadelphia, Mississippi, for the crime of trying to be a man, trying to be a woman in this country, the young girls who died in the church bombing. Those who were beaten within an inch of their life crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama with John Lewis,” O’Rourke detailed referencing several other historical civil rights challenges Americans faced. O’Rourke went on to say he thinks NFL games are essentially a great, nonviolent platform for players to protest police brutality and injustice during the national anthem. “Non-violently, peacefully, while the eyes of this country are watching these games, they take a knee to bring our attention and focus to this problem to ensure that we fix it,” O’Rourke concluded. Read his full response below: My short answer is no, I don’t think it’s disrespectful. Here’s my longer answer, but I’m going to try to make sure I make that I get this right because I think it’s a really important question. And reasonable people can disagree on this issue, let’s begin there. And it makes them no less American to come down on a different conclusion on this issue, right? You can feel as the young man [who asked the question] does, you can feel as I do, you’re every bit as American, all the same. But I’m reminded – someone mentioned reading the Taylor Branch book … ‘Parting the Waters: [America] in the King Years’. And when you read that book and find out what Dr. King and this non-violent, peaceful movement to secure better – ’cause they didn’t get full – civil rights for their fellow Americans, the challenges that they face. Those who died in Philadelphia, Mississippi, for the crime of trying to be a man, trying to be a woman in this country, the young girls who died in the church bombing. Those who were beaten within an inch of their life crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama with John Lewis, those were punched in the face, spat on, dragged out by their collar at the Woolworth lunch counter for sitting with white people at that same lunch counter in the same country where their fathers may have bled the same blood on the battlefields of Omaha Beach or Okinawa or anywhere that anyone ever served this country. The freedoms we have were purchased not just by those in uniform, and they definitely were. But also by those who took their lives into their hands riding those Greyhound buses, the Freedom Riders in the Deep South in the 1960s who knew full well that they would be arrested, and they were, serving time in the Mississippi State Penitentiary. Rosa Parks, getting from the back of the bus to the front of the bus. Peaceful non-violent protests including taking a knee at a football game to point out that black men, unarmed, black teenagers, unarmed and black children, unarmed, are being killed at a frightening level right now including by members of law enforcement without accountability and without justice. And this problem – as grave as it is – is not going to fix itself. And they’re frustrated, frankly, with people like me and those in positions of public trust and power, who have been unable to resolve this or bring justice for what has been done and to stop it from continuing to happen in this country. So non-violent, peacefully, while the eyes of this country are watching these games, they take a knee to bring our attention and our focus to this problem to ensure that we fix it.
Finally, the NFL takes a stand against the knee
The NFL announced new guidelines for players, in terms of how the respond to the National Anthem on Wednesday, and my reaction is (along with the rest of patriotic America): FINALLY. For the love of all that’s holy, the NFL is a business. Now granted the players are athletes (in some cases also entertainers), they still work for a larger organization. And that organization has a message and goals of its own: NFL AND THE COMMUNITY Football and community are the twin pillars of the NFL. Whether nationally at the league level, locally at the team level, or individually through the volunteerism and philanthropy of owners, players, coaches and club personnel, there exists a powerful NFL-wide commitment to giving back. This commitment is year-round-there is no offseason to the NFL’s multi-tiered, ongoing work to strengthen America’s communities. Through the active involvement of the 32 NFL teams, and long-standing partners, the league is able to make a positive difference in America’s communities and connect with millions of fans each year. That message has been hijacked by those few who wish to have their political agendas drive the message of an entire organization made up of 32 teams and nearly 1,700 players. Saturday, Aug. 26, 2016 was the first day 49ers player Colin Kaepernick chose not to rise to his feet for the playing of the national anthem. The outcry against Kaepernick, and other players following suit, came to a head during the 2017 NFL season, when even President Donald Trump got involved and weighed-in. It seems unheard of that it would take the organization this long to stand up to those defiant, unpatriotic players and say ‘it’s time to stop politicizing sports. You can’t make the game into something that it was never intended to be.’ A political spectacle. In the past year and a half, I’ve seen a lot of people defend the players’ actions as protected by the freedom of speech. Everybody has First Amendment rights, even these players — it’s a wonderful thing. As someone who is involved in both politics and the news business, I certainly appreciate all the aspects of the First Amendment. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. At the same time, players need to understand you can’t just walk into your workplace and have your personal and political beliefs override the mission statement of said company and what they’re trying to accomplish. You have to separate the two. Starting football games with controversial political messages has led the NFL to lose viewers and supporters. That’s a loss of profits for the NFL and the teams. That’s unacceptable. I know that I personally have been disheartened and frustrated by the vocal minority of players who have chosen to take a knee during the National Anthem and the a sideshow that has become. Kudos to the NFL for taking back control of organization. Inevitably there will be players who make a mockery of this decision and try and cash-in another 15 minutes of political fame. I hope that their teams, coaches and teammates come down on them hard and say it’s time to get back to point of the NFL: football. Use your free time to exercise your first amendment rights.
NFL owners adopt new policy to address anthem protests
NFL owners approved a new policy Thursday aimed at addressing the firestorm over national anthem protests, permitting players to stay in the locker room during the “The Star-Spangled Banner” but requiring them to stand if they come to the field. Commissioner Roger Goodell said the change was approved unanimously by the owners at their spring meeting in Atlanta, but it was met with immediate skepticism by the players’ union. “We want people to be respectful of the national anthem. We want people to stand,” Goodell said. “That’s all personnel, and to make sure they treat this moment in a respectful fashion. That’s something that we think we owe. We’ve been very sensitive on making sure that we give players choices, but we do believe that moment is an important moment and one that we are going to focus on.” In a sign that players were not part of the discussions, any violations of the policy would result in fines against the team – not the players. The NFL Players Association said it will challenge any part of the new policy that violates the collective bargaining agreement. The owners spent several hours addressing the contentious issue – which has reached all the way to the White House. Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016, a quiet but powerful protest against police brutality and racial inequities in the justice system. Other players took up the cause, and the gesture carried on during the 2017 season even after Kaepernick left the 49ers and failed to land a job with another team. President Trump turned the anthem protests into a campaign issue , saying the NFL should fire any player who takes a knee during “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The NFL hasn’t gone that far, but Kaepernick has yet to land another job and one of his former teammates and fellow protesters, safety Eric Reid, is also out of work. Both have filed collusion grievances against the NFL. While the owners touted the change as a compromise and noted it was approved unanimously, the players’ union made it clear it was not part of the discussions. “The NFL chose to not consult the union in the development of this new ‘policy,’” the NFLPA said in a statement. “NFL players have shown their patriotism through their social activism, their community service, in support of our military and law enforcement and yes, through their protests to raise awareness about the issues they care about.” The statement added, “The vote by NFL club CEOs today contradicts the statements made to our player leadership by Commissioner Roger Goodell and the Chairman of the NFL’s Management Council John Mara (co-owner of the New York Giants) about the principles, values and patriotism of our League.” Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Donald Trump says U.S. should change tax law to punish NFL
President Donald Trump is suggesting the U.S. change its tax laws to punish organizations like the NFL if members are “disrespecting” the national anthem or flag. The NFL gave up its federal tax-exempt status a few years ago and now files tax returns as a taxable entity. So it’s unlikely that Trump’s proposal, tweeted in the early hours Tuesday, would change anything. Trump tweeted: “Why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks while at the same time disrespecting our Anthem, Flag and Country? Change tax law!” Trump also tweeted Tuesday that ESPN ratings have “tanked” because of Jemele Hill, the anchor suspended for making political statements on social media. While NFL viewership is down slightly, ESPN remains among the most popular cable networks, averaging 3 million viewers in prime time. The network has suffered subscriber losses over the last few years as some viewers have moved to streaming services from cable television. Hill, an African-American co-host of the 6 p.m. broadcast of “SportsCenter,” received backlash last month after calling Trump a “white supremacist” in a series of tweets that referenced the president’s comments about a deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. That comment prompted Trump to demand an apology from ESPN and White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to call for Hill’s firing. While ESPN took no formal action against Hill over the Trump comment, she did apologize to the network for the trouble her remarks had caused while standing by the tweets. ESPN cited that apology in announcing Hill’s suspension Monday, saying in a statement that ESPN employees had been “reminded of how individual tweets may reflect negatively on ESPN and that such actions would have consequences.” Hill targeted Jerry Jones on Twitter on Sunday after the Dallas Cowboys owner stated that players who disrespect the flag would not play for his team. She suggested fans who disagree with Jones should boycott the team’s advertisers and not buy the team’s merchandise. She clarified Monday that she wasn’t calling for an NFL boycott. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Mike Rogers: Showing respect for our country
As you may have seen on the news recently, a sports organization that has been such a favorite pastime of our country, the National Football League (NFL), has become a complete and utter embarrassment to our country. I have been appalled by the recent and ongoing disrespectful acts by some of the NFL players that refuse to stand to honor the American flag during the playing of the National Anthem. These disrespectful protests only serve to divide us and do nothing to foster unity. It is a display of such disrespect to kneel during the playing of our country’s National Anthem. The playing of the Star Spangled Banner should be a time we show respect to those who have put everything on the line to fight for America. It is a time we should show respect for all of those families who forever mourn the lives of loved ones who died fighting for our country. And a time we should show respect for each other. Those few minutes during the National Anthem is a time when we all stand together – no race, no sex, no status – just Americans standing with hand over heart. I applaud President Trump for standing up against this obnoxious behavior. I agree with him 100 percent. The NFL should be ashamed it allowed these despicable actions to take place. Everyone is afforded the right to protest. But these protests should be on their own time and not during the playing of the National Anthem. Last week I was proud to cosponsor H.Res. 532, introduced by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that persons present who are not in uniform or are not members of the Armed Forces or veterans “should face the flag and stand at attention with their hand over the heart.” The National Anthem and the American flag are symbols of all that makes America great in our never ending effort to become a more perfect union. May God continue to bless our great nation. I want to hear from you on this or any issue. Please sign up for my e-Newsletter by visiting mikerogers.house.gov. To stay up to date, you can also like me on Facebook at Congressman Mike D. Rogers, follow me on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram at RepMikeRogersAL, on Tumblr at repmikerogersal.tumblr.com and you can also subscribe to my YouTube page at MikeRogersAL03. ••• Mike Rogers is a member of U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District.
Donald Trump to NFL owners: Fire players who kneel during anthem
President Donald Trump has some advice for National Football League owners: Fire players who kneel during the national anthem. He’s also encouraging fans to walk out in protest. And the president is bemoaning what he describes as a decline in violence in the sport. “They’re ruining the game,” he said during a political rally in Alabama on Friday night that veered beyond politics. Several athletes, including a handful of NFL players, have refused to stand during “The Star-Spangled Banner” to protest of the treatment of blacks by police. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who started the trend last year when he played for the San Francisco 49ers, hasn’t been signed by an NFL team for this season. Trump, who once owned the New Jersey Generals of the U.S. Football League, says those players are disrespecting the American flag and deserve to lose their jobs. “That’s a total disrespect of our heritage. That’s a total disrespect of everything that we stand for,” Trump said, encouraging owners to act. “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, you’d say, ’Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired,” Trump said to loud applause. Trump also predicted that any owner who followed the presidential encouragement would become “the most popular person in this country” — at least for a week. Trump, who was in Alabama campaigning for Sen. Luther Strange, also blamed a drop in NFL ratings on the nation’s interest in “yours truly” as well as what he contended was a decline in violence in the game. He said players are being thrown out for aggressive tackles, and it’s “not the same game.” Over the past several seasons, the NFL and college football have increased penalties and enforcement for illegal hits to the head and for hitting defenseless players. A July report on 202 former football players found evidence of a debilitating brain disease linked to repeated head blows in nearly all of them. The league has agreed to pay $1 billion to retired players who claimed it misled them about the concussion dangers of playing football. During his campaign, Trump often expressed nostalgia for the “old days” — claiming, for example, that protesters at his rallies would have been carried out on stretchers back then. He recently suggested police officers should be rougher with criminals and shouldn’t protect their heads when pushing them into squad cars. It’s also not the first time he’s raised the kneeling issue. Earlier this year he took credit for the fact that Kaepernick hadn’t been signed. Television ratings for the NFL have been slipping since the beginning of the 2016 season. The league and observers have blamed a combination of factors, including competing coverage of last year’s presidential election, more viewers dropping cable television, fans’ discomfort with the reports of head trauma and the anthem protests. Ratings have been down even more in the early 2017 season, though broadcasters and the league have blamed the hurricanes that hit Florida and Texas. Still, the NFL remains by far the most popular televised sport in the United States. Trump said the anthem protest was the top reason NFL viewership had waned. “You know what’s hurting the game?” he asked. “When people like yourselves turn on television and you see those people taking the knee when they’re playing our great national anthem,” he said. Trump encouraged his supporters to pick up and leave the stadium next time they spot a player failing to stand. “I guarantee things will stop,” he said. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Daniel Sutter: A lesson for welfare from football?
Each new football season is a time for celebration. Unfortunately we see too many stories about players’ misdeeds, and more troublingly, authorities sometimes looking the other way and enabling bad acts. Yet despite the negativity, many current and former players make great contributions to our communities. Numerous examples can be found in the finalist profiles for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award. The assistance players provide particularly to former teammates illustrates how Americans assisted each other before our modern welfare state. But let’s consider some ways that players assist former teammates. For example, Juan Bautista graduated from medical school after playing special teams for Fresno State. Players with a chance to play professionally frequently drop classes after finishing their senior season to prepare for the NFL draft, and later may be unable to afford tuition. Dr. Bautista started a foundation to help former Fresno players complete their degrees. Miami coach Mark Richt recently started The U Network to help former Hurricanes. Networking connects players with former teammates and potential employers. Coach Richt had previously built such a network when coaching at the University of Georgia. Assistance can extend to teammates’ children. Alabama fans might recall the connection between Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram’s parents and Tide Coach Nick Saban. Mark Ingram Sr. played at Michigan State. Coach Saban was on the MSU staff, and while ensuring that players attended class, he met Ingram Sr.’s future wife Shonda. After playing in the NFL, Mark Ingram Sr. unfortunately ended up going to prison. And yet a football connection helped Mrs. Ingram keep her son on the right track and eventually led him to Tuscaloosa. Why is this relevant for welfare policy? It might be hard to imagine today, but America did not have a government welfare state until the New Deal. The 19th Century witnessed rapid economic growth, but America was not yet as rich as we are now, so hard times arguably had a greater impact on people than today. Americans still helped others, with organized aid supplementing individual and church-based assistance. University of Alabama historian David Beito has documented the assistance provided by fraternal societies like the Odd Fellows and Woodmen, who offered rudimentary life insurance. Many of these groups evolved from associations set up to assist families of workers killed in dangerous professions, like fishing and whaling. Voluntary groups assisted after natural disasters long before we had FEMA. Economist Emily Skarbek detailed how the Relief and Aid Society distributed millions of dollars of aid to and constructed temporary housing for victims of the Chicago fire. Pittsburgh’s leading citizens similarly assisted after the Johnstown Flood. Football players and fraternal orders helped individuals known to the donors, even if the connection was weak. For example, Miami alumni who never played football sent recruiters to The U Network’s job fair. We are more generous when we have a connection with the people needing assistance. A personal connection allows us to tell if external factors create a need for assistance. Americans have never liked giving alms to the irresponsible. Professor Beito, for example, describes how one 19th Century fraternal organization expelled “Drunkards” and members who played “Cards, Dice, or other Gaming” at meetings. Furthermore, we generally only assist those closest to us when poor choices have created distress. Do fraternal orders or the bonds of teammates provide an alternative to government welfare in modern America? Perhaps not. When community groups and churches provide assistance, persons without connections may not receive help. Government assists strangers and those lacking personal connections to benefactors. On the other hand, America’s welfare system, I think, has always been based on compassion and not a right to assistance. In recent decades, many governments have contracted with nonprofit organizations to deliver social services. In part, this is because nonprofits often provide help more effectively and compassionately than government bureaucrats. So perhaps we are using our past to chart a new course for welfare. ••• Daniel Sutter is the Charles G. Koch Professor of Economics with the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy at Troy University and host of Econversations on TrojanVision. The opinions expressed in this column are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of Troy University.
Alabama, SEC trying to climb back to college football summit
Alabama and the Southeastern Conference are trying to climb back atop the college football mountain. The SEC was toppled— at least temporarily — from that summit by the Atlantic Coast Conference last season. A powerhouse Crimson Tide team has a much shorter climb back after a down-to-the-last-breath loss to the ACC’s Clemson in the national championship game . ‘Bama has won 17 consecutive SEC games by an average of 21 points but coach Nick Saban insists “there’s a lot of parity in our league.” Despite Saban’s perspective, there’s no debating that the battle for No. 2 has been more heated than the competition for the top spot the past few seasons. Exhibit A: Alabama’s 54-16 win over Florida in the last SEC championship game. Alabama remains the decisive favorite to win a fourth consecutive SEC title despite losing four first-round NFL draft picks. No team has won the league four times in a row — or three for that matter before the Tide’s run — since Steve Spurrier and Florida dominated from 1993-96. The first test might just be Alabama’s biggest of the regular season. The Tide opens with another ACC power, Florida State, in Atlanta’s new Mercedes-Benz Stadium. “All the guys that did play in that (Clemson) game are really hungry to get back out there and play and show the world that we are one of the top teams in the nation,” ‘Bama receiver Calvin Ridley said. Quarterback Jalen Hurts, the SEC offensive player of the year, gives Saban a returning starter at quarterback for the first time since 2013. He heads a group of promising young passers including Georgia’s Jacob Eason, Mississippi’s Shea Patterson and South Carolina’s Jake Bentley. Not to mention transfers Jarrett Stidham at Auburn and Malik Zaire at Florida . In the SEC West, teams like LSU, Texas A&M and Auburn are trying to play catch up to the Tide. Georgia, Florida and Tennessee are among the East Division teams hoping to close the gap with their West counterparts, who have held an eight-year monopoly on SEC titles . The Gators have won the East crown in each of coach Jim McElwain‘s first two seasons but are aiming higher. “Getting that taste of nine wins, we now want to get more than that,” Florida defensive back Duke Dawson said. THE FAVORITES East: Georgia. Kirby Smart‘s second team has a strong backfield with Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, and Eason has a year of seasoning. LB Roquan Smith is among 10 returning defensive starters. West: Alabama. Like Eason, Hurts has big-time backs — plus star receiver Ridley — to target. The defense has seven NFL draft picks to replace but also returning standouts like defensive backs Minkah Fitzpatrick and Ronnie Harrison and tackle Da’Ron Payne. TOP PLAYERS Minkah Fitzpatrick, DB, Alabama. Versatile defender could play either safety or cornerback. Derrius Guice, RB, LSU. Leonard Fournette‘s backfield mate has center stage to himself. Hurts. The Tide is expecting him to be a better passer after an impressive freshman season somewhat marred by late-season struggles, especially in the playoffs. Arden Key, LB, LSU. Had 12 sacks last season. Missed spring practice for unspecified personal reasons. Christian Kirk, WR/RS, Texas A&M. Led the nation with three punt returns for touchdowns. His 83 catches topped the SEC, producing 928 yards and nine touchdowns. Frank Ragnow, C, Arkansas. Hasn’t allowed a sack the past two seasons and has started 26 straight games. NEW FACES Ex-Ole Miss coach Ed Orgeron is back in the SEC West at LSU. His former program is trying to regroup from the July 20 resignation of Hugh Freeze while in the final stretch of an NCAA investigation. Interim coach and co-offensive coordinator Matt Luke is leading the Rebels. Alabama offensive coordinator Brian Daboll has been a much talked-about hire. ON THE HOT SEAT Texas A&M’s Kevin Sumlin is trying to avoid another November slump after three straight 8-5 seasons. Auburn’s Gus Malzahn hasn’t beaten top rivals Georgia and Alabama in three seasons. Getting warmish: Arkansas’ Bret Bielema and Tennessee’s Butch Jones. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Officials dismiss Donald Trump’s assertions about NFL and debates
Both the NFL and the Commission on Presidential Debates are rejecting Republican Donald Trump‘s assertions about the fall debates, which the billionaire businessman says have been rigged by his opponents to draw a smaller audience by scheduling two of them at the same time as a football game. Trump began by making an accusation in a tweet posted Friday night: “As usual, Hillary & the Dems are trying to rig the debates so 2 are up against major NFL games. Same as last time w/ Bernie. Unacceptable!” Trump expanded his conspiracy theory when asked about the debates during an interview for Sunday’s “This Week” on ABC: “Well, I’ll tell you what I don’t like. It’s against two NFL games. I got a letter from the NFL saying, ‘This is ridiculous. Why are the debates against’ – ’cause the NFL doesn’t wanna go against the debates. ‘Cause the debates are gonna be pretty massive, from what I understand, OK?” Asked about Trump’s assertion, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy tweeted on Saturday: “While we’d obviously wish the Debate Commission could find another night, we did not send a letter to Mr Trump.” A Trump aide said Saturday that the Republican candidate “was made aware of the conflicting dates by a source close to the league.” The aide was not authorized to speak by name and requested anonymity. The nonpartisan, independent presidential debate commission serves as the event sponsor and sets the participation criteria, dates, sites and formats. The sites and dates for three presidential debates were announced in September 2015. “The CPD did not consult with any political parties or campaigns in making these decisions,” the commission said in a statement issued Saturday. Two of the three debates will be televised at the same time as an NFL game. On Sept. 26, the night of the first debate, ESPN will carry the Monday night game featuring the Falcons vs. the Saints. On Oct. 9, the second debate will air opposite the Sunday night game featuring the Giants vs. the Packers on NBC. The Democratic Party was criticized during the primary race for scheduling debates between Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders on Saturday nights and holiday weekends, times when viewership is low. The Sanders campaign suggested that was an effort to limit the size of the audience. Trump told ABC: “You know, Hillary Clinton wants to be against the NFL. She doesn’t – maybe like she did with Bernie Sanders, where they were on Saturday nights when nobody’s home.” The Clinton campaign did not comment on Trump’s assertions. In the ABC interview, Trump said three debates were “fine” and that he’d rather have three than one. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
House passes resolution to commend Ken Stabler’s Pro Football HOF induction
Alabama’s House of Representatives passed HJR42, a resolution brought forth by Rep. Randy Davis (R-Daphne) to posthumously commend Ken Stabler for his recent induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Nicknamed “The Snake,” Stabler played quarterback for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide from 1965 to 1967, winning one National Championship and solidifying his place in Alabama football history with the legendary “Run in the Mud.” Stabler went on to play in the National Football League (NFL) from 1970 to 1984. During that time, Stabler played for the Oakland Raiders, the Houston Oilers and the New Orleans Saints where he racked up 194 touchdowns, 2,270 completions and a 75.3 quarterback ranking. After retiring from the NFL, Stabler worked as a commentator for CBS and then alongside Eli Gold calling Alabama football games over the airwaves. Stabler died of colon cancer in July 2015 at the age of 69. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year alongside famed Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre and others.
Marco Rubio talks football in new 60-second spot
Marco Rubio is talking football in a new campaign ad hitting the airwaves this weekend. In the 60-second ad — dubbed “Football” and set to air during the NFL Playoffs in some markets in early voting states — Rubio catches footballs and fields questions. “More nervous before first presidential debate or first college football game,” an announcer asks Rubio. “I was more nervous before my first college football game, because you were actually going to get hit,” the former football player responds. Later the announcer asks: “Most important preparation for a big game or big speech?” “Make sure there is water nearby — like right now,” the presidential hopeful responds as he catches a bottle of water. National polling averages compiled by RealClearPolitics show Rubio is in third place in national polls, behind Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz. He’s in third place in Iowa, but is in second in New Hampshire, trailing Trump.
