10 hungriest players: Watch for McNabb

Roger Rotter / FOXSports.com
Many pro athletes pride themselves on performing their best every game, but few manage to consistently excel at their highest level. Many will go to great lengths to increase their physical capabilities and mental acuity with extensive weight training, various exercises and film study.

Others find strength from motivation, using it as the extra stimuli to reach greater heights or meet expectations once set. They could be facing the prospect of a new contract, or the need for public redemption after a disappointing season. They may have felt slighted on draft day or free agency and want to prove the naysayers wrong. Those scenarios scream for players to reach inside for extra inspiration and play better than ever.

Whether motivated by greed, vanity or heart, these are the NFL's 10 hungriest players for the upcoming season.

1. Donovan McNabb, QB, Philadelphia

Few players have endured as much public scrutiny as McNabb on the account of one player. Former Eagles receiver Terrell Owens consistently questioned McNabb's leadership publicly after the 2005 Super Bowl loss. Owens also accused McNabb for being tired when the Eagles offense struggled near the end of the final quarter.

A sports hernia ended McNabb's 2005 season after nine games, making him one of the NFL's biggest disappointments. The Eagles finished a woeful 6-10 after making the playoffs for five consecutive seasons. McNabb also had his best passing season when Owens was his primary target in 2004. Now McNabb has a chance to erase any doubts about his play or his leadership, and lead the Eagles back to the playoffs.

New Baltimore quarterback Steve McNair looks to make amends after he was traded by Tennessee. (Greg Fiume / Getty Images)

2. Steve McNair, QB, Baltimore

McNair was asked to leave Tennessee's workout facility when he reported to off-season practices. The Titans wanted his contract situation resolved first by restructuring his deal. An arbitrator later ruled that McNair was correct in his actions, but the damage had already been done. McNair felt slighted after spending his entire 11-year career with the Titans and leading them to the Super Bowl in 2000. Tennessee decided to trade McNair to despised rival, Baltimore. Now McNair looks for redemption with the Ravens and rebound from an acrimonious off-season. What better way for payback than lead Baltimore to the playoffs?

3. Matt Leinart, QB, Arizona

This Heisman Trophy winner would have likely been the first pick in the 2005 draft if he made himself eligible. Without a pro team, Los Angeles media and public treat the USC stars like celebrities. When draft day arrived in April, Leinart expected that he would be one of the first picks, going to another big market like New York. But 10 teams bypassed Leinart before he was picked by the small market of the lowly Arizona Cardinals, and he lost the additional millions that arrive with a top pick and the public adulation of a big city.

If injury-prone starter Kurt Warner becomes hurt again, watch Leinart attempt to prove his detractors wrong as early as this season. He's already the quarterback of Arizona's future, blessed with one of the league's best receiving duos, Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald.

4. Larry Allen, OG, San Francisco

This mammoth guard is one of the most decorated linemen of his era. He made the NFL's All-Decade team for the 1990s and has been named to the Pro Bowl 10 of his 12 seasons with Dallas. He also became just the third player in history to be named a Pro Bowler at more than one position when he made the team as a tackle in 1998.

Though he made the Pro Bowl again last year, he was criticized by Bill Parcells during the season and the free agent was let go by Dallas. He signed with San Francisco in the off-season and has already made a big impact on San Francisco's mediocre rushing attack with his powerful blocking and aggressive demeanor. He's an excellent fit with new running back starter Frank Gore's physical style. Watch San Francisco transform from a passive running game into a powerful ground attack.

Corey Dillon is doing his best to remain New England's featured running back over first-round pick Laurence Maroney. (Al Bello / Getty Images)

5. Corey Dillon, RB, New England

Dillon is currently past his prime in his early 30s, an age where few runners excel. He's undergone extensive physical pounding by carrying a whopping 2,419 times in nine seasons. His average per carry dropped significantly last season, falling to a poor 3.5 average from an impressive 4.7 mark. Rather than waiting to see if Dillon can rebound from his injuries, head coach Bill Belichick drafted Laurence Maroney in the first round in an attempt to revive the Patriots' struggling ground game.

To combat last year's decline, Dillon has worked out religiously this off-season in order to regain his running success. Everyone knows Maroney is New England's running back of the future. Now the question is how soon? The 10-year veteran is already fighting hard to push back Father Time and remain the opening day starter and beyond for just this season.

6. Mike Bell, RB, Denver

This undrafted rookie running back didn't see the nice signing bonuses given to highly touted first-rounders like New England's Laurence Maroney, Carolina's DeAngelo Williams and Indianapolis' Joseph Addai. But he may be the only opening day starter of those three. He's impressed coach Mike Shanahan so much that he leapfrogged ahead of two veterans to become the team's No. 1 running back on the depth chart. He's outperformed one of last year's featured backs, Tatum Bell, in the preseason games.

Bell has shown to be an excellent fit with Denver's zone blocking where the runner makes one cut and heads upfield. Shanahan already made a rushing star of a sixth-round pick Terrell Davis. Now he looks to take it one step further with an undrafted back. Watch Mike keep fighting to keep his job and progress quickly with hard work and sheer determination.

7. Terry Glenn, WR, Dallas

After performing above expectations by finishing 11th among all wide receivers in yards (1,136) in 2005, Glenn may have expected to remain Dallas' No. 1 receiver. But owner Jerry Jones paid castoff Terrell Owens big dollars to become the primary pass-catcher. However, Glenn has the advantages of playing with Drew Bledsoe for one year and has earned head coach Bill Parcell's trust by posting his best career seasons in New England and Dallas under his watch.

Glenn already has seen Owens miss most of training camp by sitting on the sidelines and riding a bicycle. When Glenn elected to sit out practice, he received a stern lecture from Parcells to jump back on the field. He appeared especially motivated for a preseason game, grabbing a spectacular, acrobatic 10-yard touchdown, and explicitly expressing his pleasure. Watch Glenn do everything he can to reclaim the No. 1 wide receiver role.

8. Ahman Green, RB, Green Bay

Green was recently regarded as one of the league's top runners, compiling five straight seasons of 1,000 rushing yards. This was highlighted by his best year in 2003 when he ran for 1,883 yards, caught 50 passes for 367 yards and scored 20 touchdowns. After Green's season ended after five games last season with a leg injury, Green Bay used five more running backs to replace him as injuries continued to deplete the depth chart.

Green's unsuccessful season hurt even more in the pocket book as he was finishing the last year of his contract. The nine-year veteran was given the security of just a one-year contract, making considerably less than previously. As Green Bay sported the league's third-worst rushing attack last year in a dismal division, watch Green attempt to resurrect the team's offense and his own career.

9. Chester Taylor, RB, Minnesota

Chester Taylor aims to capitalize on his role as Minnesota's starting running back after playing backup in Baltimore. (Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)

Running back LaMont Jordan served as Curtis Martin's understudy for four seasons with the Jets before being given a chance to be the full-time starter for the Raiders. He exploded onto the NFL scene by totaling 1,588 yards for the league's ninth-highest total despite missing the final two games. He also added nine scores in becoming one of the top all-around backs last year.

This season, one running back who was signed from free agency as a previous backup is Minnesota's Taylor. The fifth-year running back will be given the chance to prove he can be an all-around runner and emerge as a weekly starter. The Vikings plan to make Taylor the featured back and utilize him both in running and receiving. Former Eagles offensive coordinator and new Vikings head coach Brad Childress will likely use Taylor in a role that he used similar for Brian Westbrook in Philadelphia. Westbrook's best season came in 2004 when he totaled 1,515 yards and scored nine touchdowns, giving an idea of the production Childress generated for this role.

10. Ronnie Brown, RB, Miami

The 2005 NFL draft's No. 2 overall pick is being giving the featured back role after sharing the duties with Ricky Williams last season. He also shared responsibilities at running back when he played for Auburn. This time, head coach Nick Saban is giving him the chance to become one of the top rushers in the league. Watch for Brown to prove he can handle the full-time chores and flourish in that role.

Investors eye Newcastle Utd bid

A Jersey-based firm has said it is interested in buying Premiership football club Newcastle United.

The Belgravia Group said it is in early talks with the club, which is valued at about £81m on the London stock market.

The announcement came after Belgravia was reported to have met majority shareholder Sir John Hall who, with his son, owns more than 40% of the club.

Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd, who owns a 28% stake in the football club, is expected to resist any buyout bid.

Newcastle shares jumped on the news, closing 9.8% higher at 67 pence.

'Most attractive'

Belgravia, a private company with interests including construction, hospitality, aviation and sports marketing said that it was examining the potential opportunity of acquiring Newcastle, which may or may not lead to an offer for the company.

The most attractive clubs are always the ones that have got the history and the geography behind them, Bill Gerrard, Leeds University Business School

"A further statement will be made if appropriate," Belgravia said.

In June, Sir John revealed that he had received "expressions of interest" in his shares.

In a statement on Monday, Newcastle said: "The club's position remains the same as it was in June when we were first informed that Sir John Hall was in talks with other parties.

"We communicated our position to the market in June and we have nothing further to add."

A number of large investors have been buying stakes in English and Scottish football clubs.

Last week, US billionaire Randy Lerner made an offer to buy another Premiership team, Aston Villa.

Bill Gerrard of Leeds University Business School said that investors were keen to get access to English football because "the Premiership is the top domestic football league in the world".

"The most attractive clubs are always the ones that have got the history and the geography behind them," he explained.

"Newcastle look the most obvious target with a completed stadium, a very large and loyal fan base, and a history of being in the upper echelons of English football."

Jones failed doping test at nationals

BOB BAUM / Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Five-time Olympic medalist Marion Jones failed an initial doping test at the U.S. track and field championships where she won the 100 meters in June, people familiar with the results told The Associated Press.

Jones' "A" sample tested positive for the banned performance enhancer EPO at the event in Indianapolis, one source told the AP on condition of anonymity because the official results are not yet public.

Marion Jones reportedly tested positive for EPO, a banned performance-enhancer that can boost endurance. (Darron Cummings / Associated Press)

If a second, or "B" sample, also tests positive, she would face a minimum two-year ban from the sport.

Erythropoietin, also known as EPO, is a banned performance-enhancer that can boost endurance. The result was first reported Friday on the Web site of The Washington Post, which also cited sources it did not identify.

The 30-year-old Jones withdrew from the Weltklasse Golden League meet on Friday, citing "personal reasons." Meet director Hans Jeorg Wirz said Jones received a morning telephone call from the United States that prompted her decision. No further details were given.

Her coach, Steve Riddick, told the AP in a telephone conversation that it was the first he had heard of the positive test.

Jones is the third elite U.S. athlete to fail a doping test this year. U.S. cyclist Floyd Landis tested positive for elevated testosterone during the Tour de France; sprinter Justin Gatlin, a three-time Olympic medalist who shares the world record in the 100 meters, tested positive for a steroid in April.

Jones made a triumphant return to her sport's center stage by winning the 100 meters at the U.S. track and field championships June 23. It was her 14th U.S. championship but first sprint title since 2002.

She withdrew from the 200 meters just before the preliminaries, settling for the 100-meter title she won the previous night. She warmed up, but her agent, Charles Wells, said she decided her legs were too tired after running three rounds of the 100.

Jones raced five times in Europe this season, winning the 100 meters in Paris and Lausanne. She had been set to race in Zurich for the first time in two years after having been snubbed by the meet for her connection to the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative steroid scandal.

She was not invited to this year's Golden League final in Berlin on Sept. 3 because of links to former coach Trevor Graham, who is under investigation by track and field's ruling body and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Other athletes who trained under Graham also were not invited.

Graham is the coach of Olympic and world 100-meter champion Gatlin, who faces a lifetime ban for his failed drug test. Several other athletes coached by Graham have been suspended for doping.

Jones is no longer coached by Graham, and works with Riddick. She has been dogged by doping allegations but had never failed a test before the U.S. championships and has repeatedly denied using performance-enhancing drugs.

Since winning three gold medals at the 2000 Games, the 30-year-old star has struggled. Her career best of 10.65 seconds in the 100 was in 1998. Her time of 10.91 at the Golden Gala meet in Rome last month was her fastest race in four years.

Best, worst comebacks in sports history

Kevin Hench / Special to FOXSports.com

When Evander Holyfield steps into the ring against Jeremy Bates on Friday night (Best Damn Sports Show Period, 10:30 p.m. ET), he will be continuing either one of two longstanding boxing traditions: the incredible comeback against overwhelming odds or the sad, embarrassing epilogue to a brilliant career.

Lord knows boxing has had a bunch of both. The sweet science has given us Sugar Ray Leonard's shocking upset of Marvelous Marvin Hagler after a three-year layoff. It has also given us Joe Frazier's draw against Jumbo Cummings in 1981, a charitable result from the judges in the former champ's final fight.

Holyfield has already written one of the all-time great comeback stories in sports history. After losing to Michael Moorer and being diagnosed with what was presumed to be a career-ending heart defect, the Real Deal entered the ring against Mike Tyson in 1996 and beat the prohibitive favorite senseless, knocking him out in the 11th round. But with losses to Larry Donald, James Toney and Chris Byrd in his last three fights and a 2-5-2 mark in his last nine bouts, a comeback for the 43-year-old Holyfield would seem unlikely.
In honor of Holyfield's latest comeback attempt, here are the five best and five worst comebacks in sports history.

5. Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan went out on top. Twice. (That is ... before he went out with a whimper — more on that later.) After walking away from the NBA after winning three straight titles in 1993 — in part to go prove why there are no 6-foot-6 slap hitters in baseball — MJ returned after a year-and-a-half absence and electrified the hoop world by dropping 55 points on the Knicks in Madison Square Garden in just his fifth game back.

Though the Bulls would lose to the Magic in the '95 playoffs, Jordan would complete his comeback with another three-peat, winning titles in '96, '97 and '98, the last one on his picture-perfect jumper in the closing moments of Game 6 against the Jazz.

4. Mario Lemieux

It's hard to choose between the two most stirring comebacks Le Magnifique made in his incredible career. By the time the 1992-93 NHL season began, Lemieux had already become accustomed to adversity and pain, battling his way through severe back problems to carry the Penguins to the Stanley Cup in '91 and '92. But then he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma during the '92-93 season. While he spent two months undergoing radiation treatments, the Pens struggled mightily and Pat LaFontaine moved 12 points ahead of Lemieux in the scoring race.

What he did upon his return was simply ridiculous. Lemieux went on the greatest scoring binge of a very scoring-bingey career, finishing with 160 points in only 60 games played, easily winning the Art Ross trophy as the league's top scorer. In his final 20 games of the season, Super Mario had 30 goals and 26 assists. But on Dec. 27, 2000, he may have topped that.

Chronic back pain had forced Lemieux into retirement in 1997, but three years later his team needed him again and No. 66 answered the call. Just 33 seconds into his first game back against the Maple Leafs, he notched an assist and would later add a goal and another assist. At age 35, after a three-year layoff, Lemieux scored 76 points in just 43 games, leading the league in points per game. Super Mario capped his final comeback by winning an Olympic gold medal for Canada in 2002.

3. Muhammad Ali

Ali was 25 years old when he knocked out Zora Folley in the seventh round on March 22, 1967, to retain his heavyweight title in Madison Square Garden and 32 when he reclaimed his title from an undefeated George Foreman in the Rumble in the Jungle in '74.

In the intervening seven years, Ali was stripped of his belt for refusing induction into the Army, effectively banned from boxing for three years and then lost the Fight of the Century to Joe Frazier upon his return to the ring. By the time he got into the ring with Foreman, who was 40-0 and had crushed both Frazier and Ken Norton (the only two men who had beaten Ali), few gave Ali a shot. But Ali came off the ropes to knock out Foreman in the eighth round, completing his epic comeback while setting the stage for his vanquished opponent's own improbable comeback odyssey.

2. George Foreman

It is without question the greatest single line in any athlete's bio: "George Foreman — heavyweight champion 1973-74, '94-97." When Foreman dropped that anvil of a short right on Michael Moorer in the 10th round of their title fight on Nov. 5, 1994, it had been 20 years since he lost his title to Ali in the Rumble in the Jungle. Twenty years!

1. Lance Armstrong

You know the story. The cancer originated in his testicle. Then it spread to his lungs, abdomen and brain. The odds of survival were about 30 percent. The aggressive chemotherapy treatment destroyed his musculature, permanently damaged his kidneys and burned his skin from the inside out. Then he won the Tour de France. Seven times.

Worst comebacks

5. Ricky Williams

Frustrated by the NFL's drug policy and not overly enamored with the game of football to begin with, Williams embarked on a soul-searching walkabout that briefly made him one of the most intriguing people in sports. Things got sticky-icky for Ricky when the Dolphins took exception to underwriting his world tour and asked for their money back. It's unclear if Williams found what he was looking for on his sojourn, but he was definitely not what Miami was looking for in a running back upon his return.



After serving a four-game suspension at the start of the 2005 season, he burst back onto the NFL scene with eight yards on five carries in a loss to the Buccaneers, then followed that up with six carries for a net loss of one yard in a loss to the Chiefs. Williams ended up with decent stats last year — 743 yards and a 4.4 yards-per-carry average — but then flunked another drug test, his fourth violation of the league's substance abuse policy, earning a one-year suspension.

After seeking sanctuary in the CFL, Williams broke his arm last month playing for the Toronto Argonauts and finds himself in his usual spot — on the sideline.

4. Ben Johnson

Determined to prove that his run to Olympic glory in Seoul in 1988 hadn't been fueled entirely by banned substances, Johnson mounted a comeback in 1991. Propped in the starting blocks of the 100-meter semifinal heat in Barcelona in '92, he had his chance. He finished dead last, thereby convincing the sports world that his run to Olympic glory had been fueled entirely by steroids. He failed another drug test in 1993 and received a lifetime ban, which he fought unsuccessfully to have overturned in court. In October '99, Johnson entered his first "competition" since the lifetime ban and finished third behind the two horses he was racing in a charity event.

3. Jose Canseco

Enough already. You're done. Though this is probably more sideshow than genuine comeback attempt, Canseco is hitting .186 for the Long Beach Armada of the independent (very independent) Golden Baseball League. Canseco no doubt thinks he's being kept out of baseball for violating the juicers' omerta, but the guy is 42 and was a one-dimensional liability when he last played in the bigs in 2001. Since then, Canseco has failed auditions with the Angels, Expos and Dodgers, which is still less embarrassing than sinking with the Armada.

2. Muhammad Ali

The Greatest of All Time gave us one of the best and two of the worst comebacks of all time. Two years after beating Leon Spinks to reclaim his title, Ali came out of retirement to fight former sparring partner and new champ Larry Holmes. The Easton Assassin pounded a diminished Ali mercilessly — though Holmes would later claim to have pulled some punches in deference to his idol — on his way to an 11th-round TKO. The image of Ali slumped on his stool stands in stark contrast to his triumphant poses over Sonny Liston and Foreman. As if the loss to Holmes wasn't bad enough, Ali further tarnished his legacy a year later, losing a unanimous decision to the immortal Trevor Berbick.

1. Michael Jordan

Not only did Michael grow mortal right in front of our eyes, but his ill-advised comeback with the Wizards splattered paint on the Mona Lisa of career-capping finishes. Instead of the storybook ending with his wrist bent as the championship-winning jumper splashed through the net, we're left with images of a cranky old man glowering at Kwame Brown. Yuck!

Kevin Hench is a frequent contributor to FOXSports.com.

Landis' father-in-law commits suicide in San Diego

/ FOXSports.com

SAN DIEGO - The father-in-law of embattled Tour de France winner Floyd Landis was found dead in his car after committing suicide, coroner's officials said Wednesday.

The body of 57-year-old David Witt was discovered at a parking garage Tuesday afternoon, said Paul Parker, an investigator with the San Diego County Medical Examiner. He had a gunshot wound to the head, and the death was ruled a suicide, Parker said.

"The Landises are devastated by the news of David's death," family spokesman Michael Henson told The Associated Press. "They loved him dearly, and they miss him."

Witt was the stepfather of Landis' wife, Amber.

Landis' close friend, Dwight van Slyke, said he did not believe the recent doping allegations against the cyclist directly led to the suicide.

"It could have been a few percentages of the whole maybe, or just another negative thing that he was depressed over," said van Slyke, adding Witt had also been struggling under the strain of opening a new restaurant earlier this year.

An avid amateur cyclist, Witt met Landis through a mutual coach in 1998 and at one point the two shared an apartment in San Diego, Henson said. It was Witt who introduced Landis to his future wife and has been credited with introducing Landis — a former mountain biker — to the world of road racing.

Witt and Landis served as best man at each other's weddings, Henson said. Witt married Amber Landis' mother Rose, a schoolteacher, a short time after the younger couple married in 2000.

Landis has been under investigation by cycling authorities after testing positive for high levels of testosterone last month. The Tour de France has said it no longer considers Landis its champion.

The 30-year-old cyclist has cited a variety of possible reasons for his failed test: ingesting something that raised his testosterone, cortisone shots for pain in his degenerating hip, drinking beer and whiskey the night before the test, thyroid medication, his natural metabolism and dehydration.

Funeral arrangements for Witt were pending.

Yankee Stadium jumper banned for life

/ Associated Press


NEW YORK (AP) - A baseball fan who jumped from the upper deck at Yankee Stadium onto the netting behind home plate has been banned for life from the ballpark and could be sent to jail, a judge said Wednesday.

Scott Harper, 19, of Armonk, N.Y., pleaded guilty Wednesday to reckless endangerment following last season's plunge at the New York Yankees' Bronx stadium. District Attorney Robert Johnson recommended probation and restitution to the Yankees, but Harper rejected the deal.
Harper's criminal sentence, to be handed down Sept. 19, will depend on the outcome of another case in Westchester County for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, state Supreme Court Judge Troy Webber said.

The district attorney's office recommended 30 days in jail; Harper had faced up to a year.

A telephone message left at Harper's home was not immediately returned Wednesday.

Harper dropped about 40 feet onto the large net, which stops foul balls from flying back into the stands, during the eighth inning of an Aug. 10, 2005, game against the Chicago White Sox. The game was delayed for four minutes while he was removed.

After the final out, Harper was carried from the ballpark on a stretcher, his head immobilized in a neck brace, and taken to a hospital, where he was treated and released.

Harper told three friends with whom he was sitting that he was going to test whether the net would hold his weight and then jumped, police said.

After landing, he sat with his head in his hands for a few moments before climbing on the net back up to the middle level of seats while players watched and the crowd roared. He then was hoisted over the railing and led away by security.

Top 10 Wacky & Humiliating Sports Moments

Expect the unexpected.
That acclaimed aphorism is not only the underlying motto for the WWE, it is also the fundamental reason why most of us watch sports.

Low-scoring, listless events are not in anyone's best interest.

It's when the icon Shawn Michaels gives the legend Hulk Hogan that sweet chin music or when The Executioner, Bernard Hopkins, presents Puerto Rican boxer Felix Trinidad with beans and rice as his symbolic last meal prior to their match, that our pupils expand, our backs perk up and our jaws drop just a little bit.

The surprising, the bizarre, the unforeseen... that's what gets the Red Bull running through our veins.

Here's a list of the Top 10 wacky sports moments of all time.


Number 10

Disco Demolition Night
"Take me out to the ballgame, take me out with the crowd" had a new meaning on July 12, 1979, as the atypical crowd that paid their entrance fee into Comiskey Park with unwanted disco records went berserk in between the two games of the double-header. They weren't there to play that funky music, white boy, because as the night fever caught on, thousands of fans rushed the field, starting fires and engaging in minor bouts of kung fu fighting. And yes, those jerks were fast like lighting, as helmeted police didn't arrive until half an hour later.
That's not the way, uh huh, uh huh, the promoters liked it and that's not what they, uh huh, uh huh, expected when they planned it.

Career Impact: Steve Dahl, the radio DJ who came up with the idea for Disco Demolition Night, is now in the Broadcaster's Hall of Fame and can be heard on the WCKG in Chicago.

Memorable Quote: "It looks like World War II."
- Disc Jockey Steve Dahl, organizer of the disco protest


Number 9

Rodney McCray - Mind The Wall
You'll often hear a baseball play-by-play commentator say, "Going back, to the track, and gone!", on a home run call, but that usually refers to the baseball, not the outfielder. During a Triple-A game at Civic Stadium in Vancouver in 1991, minor-league outfielder Rodney McCray was retreating at full speed tracking a fly ball; unfortunately, he never felt the warning track under his feet and crashed through the plywood wall.
McCray was not seriously hurt from a physical standpoint, but he may have taken a mental hit after he was featured on virtually every blooper show.

Career Impact: McCray had a brief 67-game career in the big leagues; he is now the Cincinnati Reds' outfield/baserunning coordinator.

Memorable Quote: "I just wish I had run through something like a Coca-Cola sign so I could have gotten some endorsements. Instead I ran through a local sign, Flavor-Pak meats."
- Rodney McCray


Number 8

Joe Namath - The Long Kiss Goodnight
Obviously, the former New York Jets quarterback doesn't venture into the Dating & Love section of AskMen.com too frequently, or he would have known better. In 2003, he was intercepted in an interview with ESPN's Suzy Kolber, during a nationally televised Monday Night Football game no less, after exclaiming twice that he wanted to kiss her.
She smiled it off and he came off embarrassed and single.

Career Impact: His stature has taken somewhat of a hit; he has since apologized and openly admitted to an alcohol problem for which he is seeking treatment.

Memorable Quote: "When we won the league championship, all the married guys on the club had to thank their wives for putting up with all the stress and strain all season. I had to thank all the single broads in New York."
- Joe Namath

An announcer who called a football player a girl, a coach who was attacked by fans and more wacky sports moments...

Top 10 sports pretty boys

Mo Arora / Askmen.com

"Nice game, pretty boy!"

So said Cosmo Kramer derisively at New York Mets first baseman Keith Hernandez in an episode of Seinfeld, prompting a rapidly escalating spitting incident that teaches us all a valuable lesson: There are few taunts more offensive in the lexicon of sport than "pretty boy."

In the ultra-masculine domain of athletics, this term calls into question your manhood, toughness and heart. Worse, still, it is often true.

Of course, an athlete must be more than simply good looking in order to be labeled a "pretty boy." In the world of sports, a "pretty boy" is someone whose prodigious talent is often overshadowed by his looks and off-field image. A "pretty boy" is someone whose Achilles' Heel is that he invites jokes about breaking a heel.

With that in mind, here's a list of the athletes most likely to whine about the officiating every time he misses a shot, or maybe he just owns The Notebook on DVD.

Here is a top 10 list of pretty boys in sports.

10. Tom Brady, NFL quarterback

Tom Brady with his girlfriend, Bridget Moynahan. (Evan Agostini / Getty Images)

It's hard to hate on a guy who won three Super Bowls within a four-year period in the NFL, but the New England Patriots quarterback certainly doesn't shy away from the glamorous life offered by his celebrity status.

Whether it's dating Hollywood starlet Bridget Moynahan or being named one of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People," Brady has made the most of his time in the limelight more than any other quarterback since Joe Namath appeared in a television commercial wearing pantyhose.

Pretty boy low point: Performing a sketch on Saturday Night Live in his briefs.

9. Alexandre Daigle, NHL forward

Hockey fans will surely remember the hype surrounding Daigle when the Ottawa Senators selected him first in the NHL draft in 1993, ahead of Chris Pronger and Paul Kariya.

Though Daigle was a bust on the ice, he managed to parlay his 15 minutes of fame into a 15-minute romance with Pamela Anderson and an attempted career in Hollywood in 2000. He returned to hockey after that dream failed to materialize and remade himself into a role player with the Minnesota Wild for a brief period, but the man who set a record for the largest starting salary in league history never justified that kind of value on the ice.

Pretty boy low point: Daigle's ironic draft day quote: "I'm glad I got drafted first because no one remembers number two," when the perennial All-Star and former league MVP Pronger was taken second.

8. Joey Harrington, NFL quarterback

Joey Harrington's career totally fizzled in Detroit. (Elsa / Getty Images)

Sure, he's been a disappointment so far in his NFL career. Sure, he's said to have a weak, inaccurate arm. And sure, his best trait, his leadership skills, didn't appear in his time with the Detroit Lions before being shipped off to Miami in 2006. But it's Harrington's willingness to appear in teen magazines and his love of the piano that lands him on this list.

Sure, playing jazz on the piano is an impressive skill, but quarterbacks are supposed to have a certain swagger about them, like Dirty Harry Callahan. Instead, Harrington evokes Harry Connick Jr.

Pretty boy low point: Appearing in Seventeen magazine. Seriously, come on man.

7. Jose Theodore, NHL goalie

Theodore splashed onto the NHL scene in 2001-02 when he led the Montreal Canadiens to a first-round playoff upset of the top-ranked Boston Bruins and took home awards for the league's top goaltender and MVP. Since then, his career has been up-and-mostly-down, but his army of female fans haven't seemed to mind gazing at him on the bench as much as he's been on the ice.

February 2006 was a tough month for him, as he tested positive for a masking agent that was revealed to have been an active ingredient in the hair replacement medicine Propecia, which Theodore took as a precautionary measure. Then, a week later, he slipped on some ice and broke his heel. Literally.

Pretty boy low point: During the 2005-06 season, a female Canadiens fan jokingly listed Theodore on Ebay as a "slightly used, washed-up Habs goalie," and received over 80,000 bids.

6. Ian Thorpe, Olympic swimmer

Like most Olympians, sports fans only care about them for two weeks every four years. But Thorpe's fan base has been cultivated mostly through marketing in the time between Olympiads. He's a sensation in Japan and a tourism ambassador for his native Australia. Points are also deducted for Thorpe not being interested in sports, but rather fashion. He is an ambassador for Armani and has his own line of designer jewelry.

Pretty boy low point: Playing his trade in front of an international audience in Speedos, perhaps?

5. Fredrik Ljungberg, soccer winger

Fredrik Ljungberg is known more in some circles for his underwear ads than his soccer skills. (Laurence Griffiths / Getty Images)

Ljungberg is a classic example of an athlete whose fame is somewhat of a mystery, since it can't be attributed to his play on the field. Ljungberg has put up modest numbers on English Premier League team Arsenal and for the Swedish national team, but his gig as a Calvin Klein underwear model seems to be working out for him. Ljungberg seems destined to be one of those athletes who takes home more "Hottest Athlete" awards than he does sporting accolades.

Pretty boy low point: In Sweden, he had a plethora of golden opportunities to score in its shocking draw with Trinidad and Tobago in the 2006 World Cup. None came from the foot of Ljungberg, who was seemingly invisible during the entire match.

4. Johnny Damon, baseball outfielder

Johnny Damon has cleaned up his act since signing with the Yankees. (Bryan Bedder / Getty Images)

What a difference a $52 million contract makes! Damon rose to prominence as the bearded, longhaired member of the "idiots" who helped the Boston Red Sox capture their first World Series championship in 86 years. But in 2005, after being lured away by the deeper pockets of the rival New York Yankees, Damon reported to spring training sans beard and with a neatly shorn hairdo, completing the transition from "idiot" to "corporate." In addition, Damon has a reputation within baseball clubhouses as being a creepily ardent admirer of his own butt. Finally, despite his remarkable ability to chase down fly balls in center field, he throws about as well as your 11-year-old niece.

Pretty boy low point: Appearing on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy for a makeover.

3. Rafael Nadal, tennis player

It's hard to argue with the Spanish phenomenon's early success, since he is the only man on the planet who can challenge the world's top-ranked player, Roger Federer. But Nadal spends an alarming amount of energy on his ultra-flashy tennis outfits, and his win-loss record is skewed by the fact that he's a much better player on clay than on other surfaces.

There is a risk that he could become another Carlos Moya or Gustavo Kuerten, a clay court monster who is just ordinary on other surfaces. If Nadal wants off this list, he needs to show that he's dedicated to developing his game more than developing a new line of apparel.

Pretty boy low point: Hoisting the French Open championship trophy ... in Capri pants.

2. Alex Rodriguez, baseball third baseman

A dubious choice, perhaps, since A-Rod is the reigning American League MVP. And this isn't simply resentment over the 10-year, $252 million contract he was signed to by the Texas Rangers. The man puts up huge numbers, but any boss writing a check with that many zeroes deserves some return on his investment. Unfortunately, all Rodriguez has delivered is a knack for coming up with his biggest hits at the most inopportune times, like when his team is up or down by six runs.

Every time you see him ground into a game-ending double play with the bases loaded you're reminded that "choke artist" is a symptom of being a "pretty boy."

Pretty boy low point: Slapping the ball out of Boston Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo's glove in the 2004 ALCS when he was about to be tagged out.

1. David Beckham, soccer midfielder

Much of the credit for David Beckham's appeal can go to his wife, Victoria. (Andrew Wong / Getty Images)

Who else could be considered for the top spot, but the man on whom the metrosexuality trend is based? In a sport where diving and faking an injury are skills as prized as dribbling and passing in the NBA, Beckham is the King of queens.

Mr. Posh Spice is the prototypical pretty boy: His celebrity is grounded in his looks, hairstyles, wardrobe, famous wife and his ability to, well, bend it like Beckham. All of these factors add up to overshadow the fact that he's far from the best soccer player in the world. Sure, he's very good, but he's a second-tier player and only the third-best midfielder on his own team. He's still the guy whose red card against Argentina dashed England's World Cup hopes in 1998, and he's still the guy whose missed penalty kick sank England in the 2004 Euro Cup. But his Mohawks sure are pretty, aren't they?

Pretty boy low point: Getting a stylish, but misspelled tattoo of his wife's name written in Sanskrit on his shoulder.

Got them pretty boy blues

Well, there you have it. You would be hard-pressed to find a prettier bunch of athletes. These 10 sportsmen have achieved various levels of success in their respective sports, but they certainly wouldn't have reached their levels of stardom had they not been so well-dressed and well-manicured. It just goes to show that, for these athletes, it pays to spend as much time in the bathroom as they do on the field.

Second Landis Doping Sample Tests Positive

Tour de France Champion May Lose Title

By JEROME PUGMIRE

AP

PARIS (Aug. 5) - Floyd Landis was fired by his team and the Tour de France no longer considered him its champion after his second doping sample tested positive Saturday for higher-than-allowed levels of testosterone.

The second or "B" sample, "confirmed the result of an adverse analytical finding" in the "A" sample, the International Cycling Union said.

The Swiss-based team Phonak immediately severed ties with Landis and the UCI said it would ask USA Cycling to open disciplinary proceedings against him.

"Landis will be dismissed without notice for violating the teams internal Code of Ethics," Phonak said in a statement. "Landis will continue to have legal options to contest the findings. However, this will be his personal affair, and the Phonak team will no longer be involved in that."

Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme said Landis no longer was considered champion, but the decision to strip him of his title rests with the UCI.

"It goes without saying that for us Floyd Landis is no longer the winner of the 2006 Tour de France," Prudhomme told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "Our determination is even stronger now to fight against doping and to defend this magnificent sport."

Prudhomme said runner-up Oscar Pereiro of Spain would be the likely new winner.

"We can't imagine a different outcome," Prudhomme said.

If stripped of the title, Landis would become the first winner in the 103-year history of cycling's premier race to lose his Tour crown over doping allegations.

Relive Landis' Tour de France

UCI lawyer Philippe Verbiest said Landis would officially remain Tour champion pending the American disciplinary process.

"Until he is found guilty or admits guilt, he will keep the yellow jersey," he said. "This is normal. You are not sanctioned before you are found guilty."

If found guilty, Landis also faces a two-year ban from the sport.

Despite the second positive test, Landis maintained his innocence.

"I have never taken any banned substance, including testosterone," he said in a statement. "I was the strongest man at the Tour de France, and that is why I am the champion.

"I will fight these charges with the same determination and intensity that I bring to my training and racing. It is now my goal to clear my name and restore what I worked so hard to achieve."

Landis' urine sample was analyzed at the Chatenay-Malabry lab outside Paris.

The results of the second test come nearly two weeks after he stood atop the winner's podium on the Champs-Elysees in the champion's yellow jersey.

Landis' positive tests set off what could now be months of appeals and arguments by the American, who says the positive finding was due to naturally high testosterone levels. He has repeatedly declared his innocence.

"It's incredibly disappointing," three-time Tour winner Greg LeMond said by phone from the starting line at the Pan Mass Challenge in Sturbridge, Mass. "I don't think he has much chance at all to try to prove his innocence."

The tests were conducted on urine samples drawn July 20 after Landis' Stage 17 victory during a grueling Alpine leg, when he won back nearly eight minutes against then-leader Pereiro - and went on to win the three-week race.

The case is expected to go to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency; the process could take months, possibly with appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

"It doesn't end here," said Landis' Spanish lawyer, Jose Maria Buxeda. "What matters is the concept. A prohibited substance has been found in the samples, but no immediate sanction comes into effect yet. The rider will defend himself."

Landis, a 30-year-old former mountain biker, says he was tested eight other times during the three-week tour and those results came back negative.

Landis' spokesman Michael Henson confirmed this week that the rider had tested positive for a testosterone-epitestosterone ratio of 11:1 - well above the 4:1 limit.

Landis has hired high-profile American lawyer Howard Jacobs, who has represented several athletes in doping cases.

Jacobs plans to go after the UCI for allegedly leaking information regarding the sample testing.

Earlier this week, a New York Times report cited a source from the UCI saying that a second analysis of Landis' "A" sample by carbon isotope ratio testing had detected synthetic testosterone - meaning it was ingested.

Since the Phonak team was informed of the positive test on July 27, Landis and his defense team have offered varying explanations for the high testosterone reading - including cortisone shots taken for pain in Landis' degenerating hip; drinking beer and whiskey the night before; thyroid medication; and his natural metabolism.

Another theory - dehydration - was rebuffed by anti-doping experts.

"When I heard it was synthetic hormone, it is almost impossible to be caused by natural events. It's kind of a downer," said LeMond, the first American to win the Tour. "I feel for Floyd's family. I hope Floyd will come clean on it and help the sport. We need to figure out how to clean the sport up, and we need the help of Floyd."

Uefa to rule on Reds' Israel tie

Uefa will announce on 7 August whether Liverpool have to travel to Israel for their Champions League tie with Maccabi Haifa on 22 or 23 August.

European football's governing body said on Monday that Israel could not host Uefa Cup second qualifying round games because of its conflict with Lebanon.

The matches will be moved to a neutral country, with Cyprus a likely venue.

Reds boss Rafael Benitez has said it is 'totally unacceptable' to go to Israel given the current security situation.

Uefa's decision to move Uefa Cup games will affect Hapoel Tel Aviv's home tie against NK Domzale of Slovenia on 8 August.

Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv's home match with Bulgaria's Lokomotiv Sofia on 10 August will also be moved to a neutral venue.

I would like Uefa to take this decision while they are here in Israel and not from their offices in Switzerland Israel FA chairman Iche Menahem

As well as Liverpool's match with Maccabi Haifa, Beitar Jerusalem's Uefa Cup second qualifying round clash on 24 August with Dinamo Bucharest could be affected.

Israeli FA chairman Iche Menahem reacted angrily to the news and said the IFA would "respond severely and will not let the decision pass unchallenged".

"I would like Uefa to take this decision while they are here in Israel and not from their offices in Switzerland," Menahem said in a statement.

International football returned to Israel in April 2004 after a 25-month ban due to the worsening security situation in the country.

Matches can only be played in the Tel Aviv area.

Between March 2002 and April 2004 Israeli clubs and teams were forced to host their opponents at a number of European venues including Cyprus, Turkey, Italy and Bulgaria.