From kick-offs to face-offs - keeping track of it all

The month of September has flown by and has caught up with everyone who follows sport in some way. With so much going on in college football (NCAA investigations, suspensions, games, upsets) that includes the successes (NC State Wolfpack are 4-0) and the challenges (NCAA investigations at the University of North Carolina, University of Georgie, University of Tennessee, etc.) that many programs are facing, it is hard to keep track of it all.

Here is the latest:

Kick-offs

• 2010 ACC Football: NC State's Wilson and Irving named Players of the Week 
  
• Triangle Sports Roundup: Pack's Irving receives honor, former Blue Devil wins
  
•  NC State Wolfpack earns #23 ranking with 45-28 win over Georgia Tech

NCAA Violation 2010 - ongoing series by the Raleigh Sports Examiner 

• NCAA Violation 2010: UNC players Burney and Williams suspended by the NCAA

As the weather changes from the Summer season to the Fall season, it is now preseason time for NHL hockey, regular season time for college football, and postseason time for Major League Baseball, to name a few. However, do not overlook the fact that the NBA is going to start its preseason very soon with training camps underway and for golf fans, the Ryder Cup is upon us. Sports stats and news junkies must be jumping for joy.

How does one keep track of it all?

Get a Twitter account and follow your favorite sources of information: Online media sources allow up-to-date news get to media and sport professionals as well as to fans who are hungry for the latest news. What is news now, is old in a matter of seconds, minutes and hours - thank you Twitter. However, when it is time to push it out, the latest news can be sent out in a matter of seconds, minutes, and hours - thank you Twitter.

Follow: The Raleigh Sports Examiner on Twitter: pksport

Find and save the Facebook Fan page(s) of your sport information source(s): The power of Facebook networking (i.e. sharing) and spreading the word to your friends and colleagues is 'viral' as they say. Pass on a good thing and even point out a bad thing.

Save: The Facebook Page for the Raleigh Sports Examiner: Raleigh Sports Examiner

With so many outlets to choose and receive information from, personalizing your sources helps you to keep track of what you want to find and when you want to get it.

Now that you have read where it to find it, here are some of the latest tidbits for those who love sports with sticks (i.e. NHL hockey and Pro golf) that the Raleigh Sports Examiner has put together. It has been a busy month indeed. Stay connected as best you can because more will come.

Face-offs

• Carolina Hurricanes 2010-2011 season preview

Tee-offs  

• 2010 Ryder Cup: Captains' picks are the most exciting

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• Raleigh Sports Examiner content from top to bottom - Examiner.com

• Raleigh Sports Examiner staying active and healthy - Livestrong.com

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Alabama Crimson Tide and Tuscaloosa travel up Tobacco Road

With the NC State Wolfpack extending its early-season record to 3-0 with a hard-working win for Pack Nation at Carter-Finley Stadium on Thursday over the the Cincinnati Bearcats, 30-19, the latest local big news surrounds the defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide making a visit to Durham, North Carolina on Saturday. The Duke Blue Devils and their coach Dave Cutcliffe, an Alabama grad, host the Crimson Tide at Wallace Wade Stadium. Of note, Wallace Wade brought three national championships to Tuscaloosa, Alabama when he coached the Tide from 1923-1930.

All in all, Saturday's game is Duke's home game, but it will feel like you are in Tuscaloosa. There is a specific parking lot set aside for traveling Alabama fans to park their RV's in (with detailed rules) and many purchased Duke football season-ticket packages in order to ensure to get tickets for the game. Thus, Alabama fans are providing a great economic impact on the local economy. After Saturday's game, it will be interesting to see how much the remaining Duke home football tickets that were purchased will go for on Ebay or Craigslist. They may even give them away while they are in the stands - you never know.

In anticipation of a large crowd and more income-generation potential, the Duke athletic department installed additional seating in its end zone area below the scoreboard to support a bigger crowd. Not a bad idea when you consider local fans who didn't buy season tickets (because Alabama fans did) were still able to buy tickets to watch Alabama play Duke. When checking the Duke web site earlier this week, these end zone tickets were available for $75 apiece - the highest-priced ticket for any game being played in the Triangle this season. It will be surprising if these tickets do not all sell out.

After all, when do you get the chance to travel to Tuscaloosa, Alabama by driving to Durham, North Carolina.

View: The last time Duke and Alabama played (duke.com)

Terry Fox has touched North Carolina

Knowing that you can become a part of something that is new and introducing others to it, is gratifying. In helping to operate the first Terry Fox Run held in North Carolina on Sunday, I was afforded the opportunity to be a part of something special. Oftentimes, opportunity can be sought and created, but it can also 'just happen'. Meeting fellow Canadian Sean Mitton, president and owner of the Canadian Expat Network, afforded me an opportunity to help be a part of introducing Terry Fox's legacy to North Carolina.

Do many people in North Carolina know who Terry Fox is? For the most part, only if they are Canadian. However, once the Terry Fox story is told and/or shown via You Tube, everyone 'gets it'. That in itself is gratifying, and now people in Raleigh have experienced what the Terry Fox Run is about.

As the morning fog cleared after some rain showers the night before, the sun was warm and tempered with a comfortably cool breeze that was present as Sean and I, and a few NC State students helped to prepare the registration area, refreshment area, and the 5K course around the NC State Centennial Campus. We expected a modest-size crowd for this first-time event in Raleigh. We ended up with an energetic group of Canadian expats and local students and runners who soaked up the energy present on a beautiful day in honor of a great Canadian.

The experience was enhanced with the presence of Terry's sister Judith Fox-Alder, International Director for the Terry Fox Foundation, who was there to support the event. Receiving her appreciation for putting such an event on was fulfilling to everyone involved particularly with it coming up to the 30th anniversary of the Marathon of Hope that Terry started. It turned out to be a great day for such an event.

On September 12, 2010, Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope reached Raleigh, North Carolina.

Terry Fox legacy extends into North Carolina

The first-ever Terry Fox Run will take place in North Carolina on Sunday, September 12, 2010 at NC State University's Centennial Campus. It will be the first time that I will be directly involved in helping to operate such an event and one that has a personal significance to me. Growing up in Canada, I was only ten years old when Terry Fox, a Canadian amputee runner who lost his leg to cancer began the 'Marathon of Hope' in 1980.

Terry vowed to raise awareness and funds for cancer research by running across Canada twenty-six miles at a time - a marathon a day. He inspired so many Canadians back then every day as news of his run and his appearance in towns and cities brought increasing interest and support. Terry ran 143 consecutive days and was two-thirds of the way across the country until it was discovered that cancer had spread to his lungs, cutting his 'Marathon of Hope' short. He was honored with the Order of Canada, the highest distinction of honor that a Canadian citizen is awarded with. His run and his life ended too soon, but his legacy endures and enters its 30th year.

The Terry Fox Run not only takes place in towns and cities across Canada every year, but they are now organized internationally in over 35 countries. It is an honor that Judith Fox-Alder, Executive Director of the Terry Fox Foundation, is in Raleigh to kick-off this event locally. Terry's legacy was honored last night after the Durham Bulls International League playoff game at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park (DBAP) in Durham, NC. It was a great sight seeing Terry Fox running on the video screen on the 'Blue Monster' wall preceding a great fireworks display. It truly shows that support for such a great legacy can be shared and supported in many different places.

To learn more about Terry Fox, go to: www.terryfox.org

View Terry's story by ESPN (2008) 

Terry Fox is also the subject of an updated and upcoming ESPN 30 for 30 feature directed and produced by NBA star Steve Nash - Into the Wind.

Honoring courage and meeting great people

It is not everyday that you get the opportunity to meet people who make a difference and allow you to become energized about what they do, but about what you can do as well. I had the great honor of reaching down into my Canadian roots and meeting such individuals recently. In working with the Canadian Expat Network (a great site for Canadian news and content outside of Canada) and president Sean Mitton, the first-ever Terry Fox Run will be held in North Carolina on Sunday, September 12 at NC State University's Centennial Campus. It is an honor to be able to have a part in operating this first-time event, but the most gratifying part of it all has been in getting to meet some great people involved with it.

Judith Fox-Alder, Executive Director of the Terry Fox Foundation, is in Raleigh to help kick-off the Terry Fox Run in Raleigh. Through the hard work and efforts of Sean, Judith's trip to the area has allowed me to get the opportunity to meet a person who is working hard to carry on the legacy of a great Canadian and her brother, Terry Fox. In meeting Judi and watching how she maintains the ability to champion her brother's cause and managing the emotional impact of doing so every day, I witness the persona of someone who can truly take things in stride in managing a multi-million dollar foundation, and a busy family life.

In addition to meeting Judi, I also had the opportunity to meet Mark Demontis, a legally blind hockey player and founder of Courage Canada, an organization devoted to creating programs to teach visually-impaired individuals the skills of hockey. Mark has put together a truly great cause and program to maintain his love of hockey and share it with others who may not get the opportunity to do so. Mark will also be at the Terry Fox Run on Sunday as he is a strong supporter of the event and cause, as many are.

We'll all be there on Sunday, September 12, 2010 for the first-ever Terry Fox Run in Raleigh, NC on the NC State University Centennial Campus. Registration begins at 8 am and the non-competitive run/walk begins at 9 am.

College athletics administrators trying to beat everyone to the punch

Should it be surprising that there are so many issues surrounding college athletics programs today?

This is not a new problem, and it is one that is easier to get information about instantly and constantly than in the past. That is why you will see many more press conferences and interviews being held by athletics administrators around the country to break the news themselves.Silence in these situations is not advisable. University of North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour did just that on Wednesday. He beat everyone to punch and stated that "we will have some violations."

NCAA Violation 2010: What an NCAA violation looks like

Local blogs can stop hypothesizing if UNC will be cited for NCAA rules infractions. Baddour has stated that they will. Part of the fire has been doused, but there is still much more to fan the fire with. Some questions that many will be asking and have been talking about already:

• How bad will the violations and potential sanctions be?
• Will Butch Davis be fired?
• Will Dick Baddour retire?
• Will Chancellor Thorp step down?

The University of North Carolina athletics department is undergoing an NCAA investigation and a public-relations nightmare that it never would have expected considering its history as a successful academic and athletic institution. However, with the current situation that exists, has success at UNC come at the expense of a problem that existed previously and now it has finally been revealed? How far will the 'UNC family' allow its name to be disgraced? Many high-level administrators, board members, and political figures are now weighing in on the matter, so it is a serious matter.

High-level Division I athletics programs are comprised of many 'moving parts' and involve many individuals working hard to achieve success, but at what price? The problems being encountered at the University of North Carolina are not the first, will not be the last for any institution to endure, and begs the question, is this what happens everywhere else? Probably, but you can never be fully sure until the facts come out.

At least one thing is sure about the operation of collegiate athletics programs in an academic environment today, you learn something new everyday whether you like it or not.

Fall Sports season is underway

For the first time in what seems like forever, the temperature in the Raleigh-area dipped to below 60 degrees at night - what a relief. With as hot and humid as the summer has been, not having a much cooler temperature to deal with for the early part of September would have made me think that the Summer Sports season is still here.

College football kicks off

However, with the college football season kicking off this weekend, coupled with a low overnight temperature, it is now officially Fall Sports season. The NC State Wolfpack, Duke Blue Devils, and UNC Tar Heels all played their season-openers on Saturday. The Pack and Blue Devils won, but the Tar Heels didn't. However, in playing with 12 starters out of their line-up, the Heels almost pulled it off. With the  NCAA investigation going on in Chapel Hill, winning a few football games will be paramount to keeping spirits up for UNC fans this Fall.

Sat. Sept. 4 - results

NC State 41, Western Carolina, 7
Duke 41, Elon 24
LSU 30, UNC 24

Pros and Joes on the links

PGA Tour players are not the only ones who have something to contend for during this Fall season with the current race for the Fed Ex Cup play-offs taking place this weekend at the Deutsche Bank Classic at TPC Boston. Many local amateur golfers are preparing for their own club championships that will take place in the next month or so. Yours truly is going to take the plunge in joining the field at his local club with the goal of just making the top 10 in just under a month. Why write about it if you don't do it?  Future posts will highlight the intense workouts and range work that is involved in preparing for such a rigorous challenge.

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