R.I.P. WILL SMITH. The Ohio State football family is mourning former Buckeye great Will Smith, who was fatally shot Saturday night in an apparent road rage incident that spawned from a fender bender in New Orleans. He is survived by a wife (who was also shot) and three beautiful children.
Smith posted this on Instagram while celebrating the 2016 French Quarter Festival, hours before his tragic ending:
New Orleans police apprehended the suspected shooter, 28-year-old Cardell Hayes, who didn't bother to flee the scene. They booked him on second degree murder charges Sunday morning. A judge set his bond at $1,000,000.
Hayes is a former Louisiana high school football standout. He also successfully sued the New Orleans police department in 2006 after they shot his father, who suffered mental illness.
In a twist of fate, Smith ate dinner with one of the defendants from that suit, Officer Billy Ceravolo, Saturday night an hour before the shooting.
Photo:
— Fletcher Mackel (@FletcherMackel) April 10, 2016
Will Smith 1-hour before being shot & killed, w/Pierre Thomas & former NOPD commander Billy Ceravolo.
So sad. pic.twitter.com/PMFpRm3vOl
Though this casted doubt on the original narrative, Hayes' lawyer says Smith and Ceravolo's friendship had no role in the shooting as his client didn't know Smith.
From theadvocate.com:
Accused shooter Cardell Hayes’ lawyer, John Fuller, said after a court hearing Sunday afternoon that Hayes and former Saints player Will Smith did not know each other and the 2005 police shooting of Hayes' father played no role in the incident.
[...]
Fuller said the case is more complicated than it's appeared on the news. He said that Hayes' Hummer was it preceding the shooting. Hayes took off after the vehicle that struck him and called 911 before the shooting, Fuller said.
In the court hearing Fuller made a point of saying that Hayes called 911 himself and encouraged a witness to talk to police.
"We just want to get a little more facts out there besides what's in the warrant," Fuller said.
From abcnews.com:
Hayes' attorney John Fuller said after the hearing that his client is not guilty, and implied that Hayes fired because he believed Smith was going for a gun of his own, The Associated Press reported.
New Orleans Police Superintendent Michael Harrison said police had no information leading them to believe that Smith and Hayes knew each other prior to the shooting.
Though Hayes remains innocent until proven guilty in the American justice system, he's already been found guilty in the court of Arizona Cardinals DB Tyrann Mathieu, who is from New Orleans:
I know that dude, he been a hating ass coward.... Never knew he'd grow up to be a killer tho.... May you get what you deserve coward
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) April 10, 2016
Two lives ruined and two families permanently scarred. Senseless.
WHITNER TO THE RAMS? The Cleveland Browns, much to the chagrin of Donte Whitner, cut him three weeks after the start of the 2016 NFL calendar. Though the Browns were within their rights, it meant less free agent money available for the veteran safety as teams had already made multiple free agent moves.
But Hitner's career might not be over yet.
From profootballtalk.com:
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Whitner has arrived in Los Angeles for a visit with the Rams.
The three-time Pro Bowler, who entered the NFL as the No. 8 overall pick in the draft 10 years ago, has played for the Bills, 49ers, and Browns. If he signs with the Rams, he’ll return to the NFC West, where he spent three seasons in San Francisco — each of which culminated in the NFC title game or better.
Whitner's career is in its twilight so it will be interesting to see what the Rams end up offering him, if anything at all.
Such are the perils of signing with the Cleveland Browns and having Super Bowl ambitions, folks.
OHIO: WE DO THAT COLLEGE FOOTBALL THING. The SEC likes to pound its chest for its love of college football (and Alabama championships), but Ohio's love for CFB can hang with anybody.
From Nielsen Ratings, which used 2015 CFB ratings to chart interest in the sport throughout the country:
(Nielsen's full sports media report can be viewed HERE.)
Maybe if Jim Harbaugh can cobble together a couple more Citrus Bowls victories or Mike D'Antoni can score some playoff points the state up north will get behind this whole "college football" experiment.
BOYS, DON'T DO IT! Spring game week is here. Perhaps you and your friends have an Oceans 11-styled heist planned in order to loot some scrimmage-worn Buckeye jerseys from Ohio Stadium.
I know you and your crew are master thieves and have thought and planned against everything that could go wrong, but maybe you want to think that one over?
From gatorsports.com:
Three men were arrested for getting into the locker room and stealing two jerseys, valued at $200 each, the University of Florida Police Department reported.
Reagan Harrison Dean, 21, of 7043 SW 128th St. in Ocala; Jeremy Bruce Agee, 24, of 5830 SW 89th Place in Ocala; and Stephen Paul Collazo, 35, of 8023 SW 67th Lane in Gainesville, were charged with felony-level burglary and theft, according to arrest reports.
UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes said none of the men are affiliated with the university.
The thing about thieves' plans are they never end with them in jail... until they do.
WHAT THE HELL, JIM? The NCAA decided last week that satellite camps are bad but unlimited text messaging from team interns is good, which is the arbitrary dumb-assery we've come to expect.
But lost in the fracas was another villain, Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany, because good men are judged on what they do in the face of evil.
From mlive.com:
ANN ARBOR -- On Friday afternoon, the SEC defeated the Big Ten again, but this time it wasn't about talent on the football field.
This mismatch was Greg Sankey vs. Jim Delany, as the NCAA put at end to satellite camps, an official victory for Sankey's SEC and a blow to Delany's Big Ten and Jim Harbaugh, the north's biggest proponent of the idea.
In a sport that continues to operate inside the often absurd and nonsensical confines set forth by the NCAA, only two groups of people survive.
The strong and the loud.
Counterpoint: Anytime you can let SEC tears run roughshod over a recruiting tool used by the biggest coaching names in your conference, well, you just have to do it.
And since we're talking about satellite camps, apparently Stanford coach David Shaw thinks there are like 10 southerners that could hack it at Stanford:
David Shaw says no reason for satellite camps "where there might be one person in the entire state that's eligible to get into Stanford."
— Ted Miller (@TedMillerRK) April 10, 2016
Counterpoint: The girl who took my virginity graduated with honors from Stanford, coach.
THOSE WMDs. To live and die in Mumbai... This is why you're single, Joe... These are the remains of the Soviet space program... Some advice for young people... Wheelman in epic L.A. car chase trained by U.S. military... The Reckoning... Bullies: A friendship... Screw you, Jake!
