PHILADELPHIA – Marvin Harrison will not be facing charges in the shooting that occurred outside of a Philadelphia business owned by the Indianapolis Colts receiver.District Attorney Lynn Abraham decided to wait until after the Colts season was over to share the findings in the investigation of the April 29 shooting that injured three people.

With the Colts’ season coming to a close with an OT loss in San Diego over the weekend, Abraham called a press conference on Tuesday morning to announce the results.

“At this juncture we are unable to proceed with a criminal prosecution”, said Abraham. “We have had nine or so various versions of what was supposed to have happened”. Abraham also said as prosecutors they “cannot vouch for the credibility of these witnesses because they have given so many contradictory comments”.

She went on to describe the witnesses as “inherently untrustworthy” but added there may yet be the possibility of a prosecution in the case if police could find credible witnesses.

Throughout the investigation, Harrison said he was not involved in the actual shooting but sources told ESPN that Harrison admitted to being in a fistfight around that time. Evidence obtained during the investigation also verified that six casings found at that crime scene matched the type of gun that is owned by Harrison.

Pennsylvania gun laws state that if a gun is discharged during a crime, the owner of that gun can be charged even if he is not the actual shooter.

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GLENDALE, AZ – In a rematch between two NCAA powerhouses, the No. 3 Texas Longhorns defeated the No. 10 Ohio State Buckeyes in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona and they did it in dramatic fashion.Longhorns’ QB Colt McCoy threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Quan Cosby with only 26 seconds remaining in the game for a 24-21 win. McCoy, the Heisman Trophy runner-up, and Cosby both finished with impressive numbers. McCoy was 41 of 59 for 414 yards and 2 TDs while Cosby had 14 receptions for 171 yards and two TDs.

The last time these two teams faced each other it was just the second game of Colt McCoy’s freshman year. The Buckeyes were ranked No.1 at the time and McCoy’s Longhorns were right behind at No.2.

McCoy finished that game with only 154 passing yards and one TD in a game dominated by the Buckeyes 24-7.

Matured with three years experience, a 31-7 record under his belt and staring another defeat to Ohio State right in the eyes, McCoy turned his team’s final possession into an 11-play, 78-yard drive that ended with the winning pass to Cosby, stealing the victory.

The Longhorns lost their opportunity of playing in Thursday’s BCS Championship game earlier in the year when they lost with just one tick on the clock against rival Texas Tech.

Thursday’s championship game will feature No. 1 Oklahoma against No. 2 Florida. The winner of that game will be crowned No.1 and Texas will have to settle for the runner-up No.2 position, just like McCoy in the Heisman race.

If Oklahoma defeats Florida in that game and takes the BCS, the argument for a NCAA playoff is sure to pick up steam during the offseason.

Texas would then be the probable No. 2 and would be sitting behind No. 1 Oklahoma, a team the Longhorns defeated 45-35 earlier this season.

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NEW YORK – With all the shocking upsets that occurred yesterday in the NBA, you have to wonder what was in the league’s drinking water this weekend.All three first-place Eastern Conference teams lost.

The NBA Champion Boston Celtics (29-6) went into the Big Apple and put on a show. Not the kind of show we have grown accustomed to but more like a sideshow.

The undermanned N.Y. Knicks (13-19) and their watered-down roster put just seven players on the court all afternoon and shocked the Celts 100-88.

Guys by the name of Pierce, Garnett and Allen were taken to school by guys by the name of Chandler, Duhon and Lee. Chandler led the Knicks with 31 points and Al Harrington came off the bench to add another 30.

In other upsets Sunday, dunk-champ and All-Star vote leader Dwight Howard’s 39 points were not enough as the first-place Orlando Magic were upset by the Toronto Raptors 108-102 and in the biggest shocker; the Washington Wizards (7-25) squeaked out an 80-77 win against LeBron and the first-place Cleveland Cavaliers (27-6).

Not to be left out, the Dallas Mavericks were upset 102-82by the Memphis Grizzlies.

The upset-fest finally came to a slow stop when the heavily-favored Detroit Pistons (21-11) needed a goaltending call from referee Tommy Nunez Jr. with 4.9 seconds left and barely squeaked out an 88-87 win over the lowly L.A. Clippers (8-25) then the L.A. Lakers beat the Portland Trailblazers 100-86.

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ATLANTA – It isn’t often I am hoping for a tie in anything related to sports but one rare exception was the AP 2008 NFL Coach-of- the-Year race that I had been anxiously awaiting.How do you choose between two rookie head coaches who week-in and week-out made headlines around the NFL and rescued two struggling franchises, pulling them out of the rubble and restoring their reputations around the league.

It appears that a majority of the 50 AP writers who voted felt the same way.

In a photo finish race between two rookie head coaches, Atlanta Falcons Mike Smith took home the honors, edging out Miami Dolphins Tony Sparano by just one vote, 23 ½ to 22 ½.

Both coaches had incredible inaugural seasons, converting their last-place teams into playoff teams.

Sparano transformed the Dolphins from a 1-15 laughing stock into an 11-5 contender, earning the AFC East title and a home game in the playoffs.

The Dolphins lost that game 27-9 to the Baltimore Ravens who brought their stonewall defense to the Sunshine State, intercepting AP comeback player of the year Chad Pennington four times and ending Sparano’s run.

Mike Smith turned his Falcons around in similar fashion. The Daytona Beach Florida native took over a last-place 4-12 team with a roster depleted of its All-Pro and high-caliber players. Alge Crumpler, DeAngelo Hall, Joe Horn and Warrick Dunn were traded or cut and star QB Michael Vick was incarcerated for running a dog fighting operation.

Smith created a roster overflowing with no-name players and rookies and rebuilt around AP Rookie-of-the-Year QB Matt Ryan to finish 11-5 and earn a wild-card spot and unexpected trip to the playoffs. The Falcons were defeated in that game by the Arizona Cardinals 30-24.

“We went through every bit of pain last year that a franchise or a community of fans could imagine,” said Falcons owner Arthur Blank. “To see things come around this year as well as they have, it’s just a tribute to the men involved who are making the decisions.”

Smith is the second Falcon coach to take home the award. Dan Reeves won it in 1998, the year the Falcons advanced to the Super Bowl.

Although this race did not end in a tie and allow two deserving men to receive the recognition they deserved, it would have if I had a vote instead of the writer who for some ridiculous reason voted for Bill Belichick.

Although I am based in Atlanta and have covered and supported the Falcons all season, I would have pulled the lever for Sparano, bringing the final tally to a tie.

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The revolving door to NFL head coaching positions has been spinning out of control since the end of last season with 11 head coaching changes occurring and several more being anticipated.Four teams started the NFL disposable coach act prior to the start of the season.

The Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins all handed headsets to rookie head coaches Mike Smith, John Harbaugh, Tony Sparano and Jim Zorn.

Other teams reminded us how impatient owners can be in a 16 game NFL season when the axe was swung and three other head coaches were sent packing early. The St. Louis Rams’ Scott Linehan and Oakland Raiders’ Lane Kiffin got canned after just Week 4 and San Fran 49ers’ head coach Mike Nolan was asked to hand in his headset after Week 7.

While those three teams were setting up interviews at the
close of the season, several others were sharpening their axe. Detroit, Denver, Cleveland and the New York Jets barely got back into the office on the Monday following the regular season when they were filling out pink slips.

The Rod Marinelli (Lions 0-16) and Romeo Crennel (Browns 4-12) firings came as no surprise but seeing Eric Mangini (Jets 9-7) and Mike Shanahan (Broncos 8-8) get their walking papers was less expected.

Mangini turned the Jets into an AFC East contender with a 9-7 record this season. Getting upset by the visiting Miami Dolphins and losing a chance of winning the division title at home the final game of the season put his head on the chopping block.

The math is simple and when you do it, it reminds you how the NFL head coaching occupation comes with very little job security. There were 11 head coaching changes out of 32 teams in 2008 with speculation of other coaches like Jim Zorn (Redskins) and interims Jim Haslett (Rams) and Tom Cable (Raiders) being replaced before the 2009 season.

The 49ers did sign interim head coach Mike Singletary to a four-year $10 million contract after his team went 5-4 over the nine games he sidelined after Nolan was fired.

Singletary joined in the fray right away and fired his offensive coordinator Mike Martz. It must be contagious.

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MIAMI – Four NFL teams took a gamble hiring rookie head coaches before the season started and the moves paid off for three  of those teams who find themselves with 11-5 records and gearing up to take the field this weekend in the playoffs.Miami Dolphins rookie head coach Tony Sparano orchestrated one of the most impressive turnarounds in NFL history. Taking over a 1-15 team, Sparano, who worked under Bill Parcells in Dallas, succeeded under pressure when he and his ‘fins went into the Meadowlands as underdogs the last game of the season and upset Brett Favre and the Jets to steal the AFC East division title and finish with an 11-5 record.

Atlanta Falcons rookie head coach Mike Smith and Baltimore Ravens John Harbaugh also took over struggling franchises and finished with the same 11-5 record.

Against the opinion of much of the media, both coaches made gutsy decisions, opting to start their first-round quarterback picks Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco Week One of the season.

Ryan, who won the AP Rookie-of-the-Year and Flacco capitalized on the opportunity and went on a record-setting journey, starting all 16 games and leading their teams to wild-card berths.

After completing several interviews during the offseason, Ravens’ owner Steve Biscotti said his decision to hire Harbaugh was just a simple “gut feeling” after Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett turned down an offer for the job. As fate would have it, Garrett has hung up his headset for the season and Harbaugh is playoff bound and sure to receive some Coach-of-the-Year votes.

It’s hard not to cheer for these guys since they stepped into such challenging roles on struggling teams in the rebuilding phase.

Interesting fact is, with the Ravens facing the Dolphins one of these men are guaranteed to make it to the next round of the playoffs.

Cast your vote for Sports Climax NFL Coach-of-the-Year on our homepage.

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DETROIT – After masterminding the incredible one-year turnaround, converting the Miami Dolphins from a 1-15 laughing stock of the NFL to the AFC East division champs, Bill Parcells is said to be leaving the Miami Dolphins if the sale of the team goes through next month.An NFL guru, Parcells has a clause in his contract allowing him to walk if Wayne Huizenga ever sells the team. With a sale looking likely and expected to be finalized soon, teams are already lining up to pursue Parcells.

One of those teams is the Detroit Lions who fired Rod Marinelli and a majority of the coaching staff this morning. Lions’ owner William Clay Ford also handed CEO Matt Millen his walking papers after the third game this season, creating an opening for someone like Parcells.

Parcells is a perfect fit for William Clay Ford and the Lions. Ford has developed a reputation of being the worst owner in professional sports but that image has much to do with his remaining too loyal to his management staff and keeping bad execs like Millen around for way too long.

Ford is sure to stand back and allow Parcells to go through the rebuilding process without pressuring him with any timetable.

Ford also has a reputation of opening up his pocketbook and paying high dollar to coax free agent players to don the Lions’ blue. Millen spent several years wasting draft picks and dumping tens of millions into contracts for free agents who were not talented enough to create a winner.

Parcells on the other hand is a genius when drafting talent and would spend Fords money wisely, creating a winner. The 0-16 Lions are stocked with several high draft picks this year including the No. 1 overall pick, the Cowboys’ first-round choice that was obtained in the Roy Williams trade earlier this year and the first choice in the second round (33rd overall).

That laundry list of high draft picks is a great starting base for a guy like Parcells who could build a winner around young talent like Calvin Johnson and Kevin Smith.

After a solid draft, other key free agents may jump on the opportunity to play on a Parcells Lions’ team.

Adding Parcells would light a fire under the Lions’ ass and also create a positive image for the team, something the organization has been lacking for almost a decade.

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The 2008-09 NFL regular season came down to the wire as several teams battled their way into a few remaining wild-card spots and division titles. You have to appreciate the fact that none of these teams backed into the playoffs, they all came out victorious on Sunday.While the Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings and San Diego Chargers secured playoff spots with wins at home, the Miami Dolphins had to travel to the Meadowlands and beat Brett Favre and the New York Jets to capture the AFC East division title.

In that much-anticipated match-up between quarterbacks Chad Pennington and Favre, the Dolphins capped their miraculous turnaround season with a 24-17 win.

Pennington completed 22 of 30 passes for 200 yards and two TD’s while Favre struggled; throwing three interceptions in the game.

The Eagles went into their afternoon game against the Dallas Cowboys knowing the Tampa Bay Bucs and Chicago Bears had already lost and that a win would put them into the final wild-card spot. The Eagles responded by blowing the Cowboys off the field in a lopsided 44-6 win.

The stumbling Cowboys turned the ball over 5 times in the loss.

A few of the games came down to final-second heroics from the placekickers.

The Vikings’ Ryan Longwell nailed a 50-yarder with just five seconds on the clock to defeat the New York Giants 20-19 and John Casay buried a 42-yarder through the uprights with just one second left on the clock for the Carolina Panthers 33-31 victory over the New Orleans Saints. Casay’s kick earned the Panthers the NFC South division title and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

In addition to the Dolphins, the biggest surprise teams in the playoffs are the Atlanta Falcons and Ravens who both finished 11-5 with rookie quarterbacks Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco at the helm.

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NEW YORK – Going into the final week of regular season for the NFL, a few games demand our attention and they are on opposite ends of the spectrum.

Miami Dolphins at NY Jets – Perched at one end of that spectrum is the Miami Dolphins at New York Jets game at the Meadowlands.

Led by ex-Jets QB Chad Pennington, the Dolphins have turned their franchise around in impressive fashion from a 1-15 disaster to a well-run machine in position to not only make the playoffs but actually win their division with a win in New York.

This game is oozing with hype.

After Brett Favre took the stage in N.Y. at the beginning of the season, Pennington was sent packing to make room for the aging quarterback from Green Bay. Pennington has responded by leading his Dolphins back into contention and he would love nothing better than proving the Jets organization and its fans wrong.

Pennington sits as the No. 2 rated QB in the NFL with Favre who leads the league in interceptions with 19 sits at No. 18.

Funny thing about this game is the Patriots need a Jets’ win so Bill Belichick will be cheering for Eric Mangini to win the game. Mangini is the man who brought the Patriots’ video scandal to light, costing Belichick a hefty fine of $500,000.

Detroit at Green Bay – If you would like to see history being made or are one of those personalities that fall under the “misery loves company” category, do not miss this divisional match-up because the Lions will make history and set a record of futility on Sunday by going 0-16.

Some blame the Bobby Layne Curse on the Lions’ woes but the truth is, Joe Barry’s defense may be the worst in the history of the NFL and is the leading culprit of their demise.

Barry who was the target of a controversial media session last week, has created a defense that has gotten blown out in the comfort of their temperature-controlled Ford Field all year. Don’t expect his toothless Lions to grind out the final 60 minutes of their season in the frigid tundra of Green Bay and get a win.

The Packers are a team that always plays to win no matter what the circumstances and their fans show up in hordes to support them no matter what is at stake.

Tune in to Lions’ coach Rod Marinelli’s post game because they have been more than entertaining this year and it should be his final one as a head coach in the NFL.

Copyright © 2008 – Sports Climax

NEW YORK – Heading into Week 17 in the NFL, it’s time to give serious thought to who may be voted the AP NFL Offensive Rookie-of-the-Year for 2008.

Last year’s voting was cut and dry with Minnesota Viking Adrian Peterson running away with the honors but this year’s rookie crop is overflowing with a smorgasbord of talent.

Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan is drawing a lot of attention but there are some AP voters also keeping a close eye on Baltimore Ravens QB Joe Flacco.

Both quarterbacks have started their NFL careers at a phenomenal winning pace, going 10-5.

The running back position is also stacked. Three rookies have already joined this year’s 1000-yard club.

Chris Johnson Titans (1,228 yds) , Steve Slaton Texans (1,190 yds) and Matt Forte Bears (1,115 yds) all deserve to be considered. In addition to leading the Bears in rushing yards, Forte also leads his team in receptions with 58 for 424 yards.

Another rookie offensive showcase can be found in the Rocky Mountains. In the first NFL game of his career, WR Eddie Royal of the Broncos came out of the gate with a vengeance, taking former Pro Bowler DB DeAngelo Hall to school much of the game.

Royal finished his inaugural game with 9 catches for 146 yards; a 16.2 yd. average. Royal’s stats have been steady since totaling 80 receptions for 904 yards.

Voting for the NFL Offensive Rookie-of-the-Year will be a difficult task for the AP voters this season and it’s hard to predict who will be crowned the king of this year’s collection of rookies.

If I had to vote today, I would choose one of the quarterbacks since it is the hardest position to step into and the hardest to master.

So Matt Ryan is my choice because his QB rating is higher and some other important stats like his TD to INT ratio is better than Flacco’s.

Go vote on our Sports Climax poll located on our homepage. The ballot contains all 6 of these star players and last time I looked, there was a three-way tie for first.

It will be interesting to see how you sport junkies will stack up against the final tally of the Associated Press.

Copyright © 2008 – Sports Climax