STORRS, Conn. – The University of Connecticut women’s basketball team will host the first-ever edition of ESPN’s Women’s College Basketball Gameday at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn., on Saturday, Jan. 16 when it plays host to BIG EAST rival Notre Dame.

“We are honored that ESPN has chosen the University of Connecticut to host the first ever women’s basketball GameDay”, says Director of Athletics Jeff Hathaway. “The selection of UConn is a testimony to Hall of Fame Coach Geno Auriemma and the many outstanding student-athletes who have worn the Husky uniform over the years. To be the first GameDay host for men’s basketball (in 2005) and women’s basketball is a tremendous statement for UConn. This will be another exciting and historic event for our University and our loyal fans.”

“It is exciting for the players, coaches and fans of Connecticut and women’s basketball to have the first College Gameday in Storrs,” said Auriemma. “The matchup of UConn and Notre Dame should provide quite the setting for this event and showcase the best of the BIG EAST Conference.”

UConn also served as the first-ever host of ESPN’s Men’s College Gameday when the Huskies faced Pittsburgh on Jan. 22, 2005.

ESPN Gameday is a traveling studio show that broadcasts live from select game venues across the nation, incorporating local fans and host campus into each of its shows.

UConn Football links

Despite Youth, Huskies Defense Packs Solid Punch [Rob Lunn – NESN.com]

A New Monster Fighting for Time on UConn’s Athletic O-Line [Rob Lunn – NESN.com]

Training Camp Revisited [Thoughts From a Fat White Guy]

Edsall From Media Day [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

More From Media Day [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Video View: A Trio Of Videos From Monday’s UConn Football Media Day In Storrs [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Anything Exciting Coming Out Of Backfield? [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

BC Or UMass In UConn’s Future? [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Media Day avalanche [John Silver – Journal Inquirer]

Another Media Day in the books [Ramblings from the Runway]

Scheduling, bowls and more from Media Day [Ramblings from the Runway]

Edsall calls out CIAC [Ramblings from the Runway]

Difton to start [Joe Perez – Norwich Bulletin]

Media Day musings [Neill Ostrout – Connecticut Post]

More from the Shenk [Neill Ostrout – Connecticut Post]

‘You were the fastest kid in school!’ [Neill Ostrout – Connecticut Post]

Football Hosts 2009 Media Day [UConnHuskies.com]

Difton Impressive [Connecticut Post]

Williams’ speed turns heads at UConn [Connecticut Post]

UConn’s Difton Making A Case For Starting Spot [Hartford Courant]

Williams In The Hunt At Defensive End [Hartford Courant]

Husky Tracks: A Look At Monday’s UConn Football Practice [Hartford Courant]

Freshman Difton says he’s starting [Norwich Bulletin]

Edsall blasts CIAC’s regulations [New Haven Register]

Freshman Difton living up to expectations

Huskies’ new offensive boss has high hopes [Waterbury Republican-American]

UConn’s depth chart taking shape [Waterbury Republican-American]

Rams hire former UConn QB as assistant [Pittsburgh Tribune-Review]

Natick’s McCummings headed to UConn [Milford Daily News]

UConn in 2009… And Beyond [mgoblog]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Parker Eyeing Gold, Not National Flag Blue & White [Rich Elliott – Connecticut Post]

Initial 2012 USA Basketball Women’s National Team Has BIG EAST Feel [BigEast.org]

Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird Among Eight Players Named To 2009-12 USA Women’s Basketball National Team [UConnHuskies.com]

Taurasi, Bird among eight named to U.S. squad [New Haven Register]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Charlie Villanueva’s Angels [UConn Huskies Basketball]

Conn-ditioning: Kemba Walker uses Dyckman to prep for Huskies [New York Daily News]

Other UConn related links

Men’s Soccer: White Scores First MLS Goal [UConnHuskies.com]

Women’s Lacrosse: Connecticut to Participate in Inaugural Nick Colleluori Women’s Lacrosse Classic [UConnHuskies.com]

Women’s Soccer: Women’s Soccer Gets Ready for 2009 Season [UConnHuskies.com]

STORRS, Conn. (August 18, 2009) – The University of Connecticut has finalized an agreement with the University of Michigan for a home-and-home football series in the 2010 and 2013 seasons. UConn will travel to Ann Arbor on Sept. 4, 2010 to play in Michigan Stadium while the Wolverines will come to Rentschler Field on Sept. 21, 2013 to take on the Huskies.

Michigan is one of the nation’s most storied programs as the Wolverines have won 11 national championships and 42 different conference titles. The Wolverines enter the 2009 season with 872 wins in program history and a .740 winning percentage – both of which are the highest marks in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision history.

“We are very excited about having a football series with the University of Michigan,” says UConn Director of Athletics Jeffrey Hathaway. “This football series will provide two outstanding games for both programs and their respective fans. We are happy to bring this premier intersectional matchup to our dedicated football fans who fill Rentschler Field.”

“It is very exciting for our football program to have a series with Michigan,” says UConn head coach Randy Edsall. “We want to challenge our team by playing a strong non-conference schedule in addition to the BIG EAST slate we face every year. Michigan is a nationally-prominent program and we are happy to have them on our future schedule.”

The contest at Michigan next season will serve as the rededication game of the historic stadium after a large-scale renovation. Connecticut ‘s home game with Northeastern in 2010, originally scheduled on Sept. 2, will now be played on Oct. 9.

“The Michigan game in 2013 will be another outstanding non-conference match-up that will be played at Rentschler Field,” says Hathaway. “We annually play a demanding BIG EAST slate at home and Michigan adds to an impressive list of Bowl Championship Series opponents that are on our future schedules at Rentschler Field. The best way for Husky fans to ensure they will be at Rentschler Field for all of these great games is by being a season ticket holder.”

UConn will also play a home-and-home series with Tennessee beginning in 2015 with the Volunteers coming to Rentschler Field on Sept. 26 with a return trip to Knoxville on Sept. 3, 2016.

Other upcoming non-conference opponents coming to Rentschler Field include Vanderbilt (2010), Iowa State (2011), North Carolina State (2012) and Maryland (2013). By the conclusion of the 2010 season, UConn will have played host to non-conference opponents from the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 10, Big XII and Southeastern conference at Rentschler Field.

Tuesday, August 18^th @ 7:07 PM

Josh Beckett (R) (14-4, 3.10) vs Ricky Romero (L) (10-5, 3.70)

TV: NESN, MLB.tv

Radio: Red Sox Radio Network, MLB Game Day Audio

Wednesday, August 19^th @ 7:07 PM

Clay Buchholz (R) (1-3, 4.45) vs Roy Halladay (R) (13-5, 2.65)

TV:NESN, ESPN, MLB.tv

Radio: Red Sox Radio Network, MLB Game Day Audio

Thursday, August 20^th @ 7:07 PM

Jon Lester (L) (9-7, 3.71) vs Brett Cecil (L) (5-1, 4.35)

TV: NESN, MLB.tv

Radio: Red Sox Radio Network, MLB Game Day Audio

According to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Boston Red Sox have officially released John Smoltz after designating him for assignment back on August 7th.

Once Smoltz clears unconditional release waivers  on Wednesday, he can sign with anyone for the pro-rated minimum salary. The Red Sox will be responsible for the remaining amount on the $5.5 million contract he signed before the season began.

And according to Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers, Cardinals, Marlins and Rangers are interested in the services of Smoltz.

It’s a shame that his time in Boston didn’t work out. If he could have pitched well, he could have helped the push to the playoffs.  But after seeing him pitch this season, he may not be of help to anyone unless it’s out of the bullpen.

His problems seemed to stem from facing batters for the second time in an outing. Having him pitch in relief could combat the problem. Smoltz would need to sign before August 31st to be eligible to be on the playoff roster.

Here is the press release from USA Women’s Basketball concerning the roster for the 2009-12 USA Basketball Women’s National Team coached by UConn Huskies women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma:

Looking to continue its unprecedented run of four consecutive Olympic gold medals, USA Basketball today announced that eight of the athletes who helped the U.S. capture a gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, will return to the red, white and blue as members of the 2009-12 USA Basketball Women’s National Team. Forming the initial USA Women’s National Team roster are two-time Olympic gold medalists Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever) and Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury); as well as ’08 gold medalists Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx), Sylvia Fowles (Chicago Sky), Kara Lawson (Sacramento Monarchs), Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks) and Cappie Pondexter (Phoenix Mercury). Player selections were made by the five member USA Basketball Women’s National Team Player Selection Committee.

As was the case over the last quadrennium, the USA team will be fluid and athletes will be added progressively to the 2009-12 USA National Team roster. It is expected that the official 12-member 2010 USA World Championship and 2012 U.S. Olympic teams, should the USA qualify, will be comprised of players from the 2009-12 USA National Team.

“Naming these eight players was not that difficult of a decision to make, I’m sure, because those eight were truly instrumental in winning the Olympics in Beijing,” said 2009-12 USA Basketball Women’s National Team head coach Geno Auriemma of the University of Connecticut. “As long as they want to play and maintain their level of play, I can’t see them not being on the team. I’m excited about the fact that their experience and their knowledge of what it takes to win a gold medal is going to help me tremendously as we move forward.

“I’m looking forward to the training camp this fall. I know not all of them are going to be there, I would presume, because a few of them will be playing in the championship series in the WNBA. I understand that, but just to be around them to let them get a feel for me, it will give me an opportunity to evaluate what they can do, what they do well. It’ll help me put them in a position to be successful. I’m really looking forward to that. And not just with the eight players that we’re talking about, but also the players who will be added to finish off the training camp roster. It’ll be an exciting time for me and I hope it’s an exciting time for all of them.”

Additional athletes and coaches will be invited to participate in the USA’s first training camp, which will be held this fall (dates and site TBA) at a later date.

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For the first time since April 21st, the Boston Red Sox find themselves not in a playoff position after falling 4-3 to the Texas Rangers yesterday afternoon. The Rangers hold the lead in the wild card by a ½ game over the Red Sox who also trail the Yankees by 7.5 games in the AL East.

So it begs the question, is it time to panic?

No it’s not time to panic just yet. There’s still 45 games left to play in the season and anything can happen. For all intents and purposes, the  Red Sox are realistically playing for the wild card spot unless something major happens to the Yankees. A sweep of the Yankees this weekend at Fenway could change things and make the race a little closer.

Sure the Red Sox aren’t playing their best baseball right now but there’s a long way to go. I’ve heard and seen a lot of chatter about how much the Red Sox missed Kevin Youkilis this weekend because of his 5-game suspension. Yes they missed his offense but if he had appealed the suspension, he ran the risk of missing the Yankees series this weekend. While every series is important, would you have rather had him for this weekend or the Yankees?

It’s definitely more important to have his bat in the lineup this weekend then it was this past weekend. They’ll get his bat back in Toronto tomorrow night and we can only hope he sparks the offense.

The concern right now is the starting pitching. After Josh Beckett and Jon Lester, there’s not much. Junichi Tazawa definitely looked a little out of his element yesterday. Brad Penny has sucked since the All-Star break and it wouldn’t surprise me if he was the one to go when Tim Wakefield returns from the disabled list. Clay Buchholz has been great his last three starts, it’s just unfortunate t hat he’s run into the other teams’ ace. Of course, he’ll be facing Roy Halladay in his next outing so it won’t get easier.

But another solid effort from Buchholz could go a long way in this race as the season winds down.

Links coming up after a 10 second pause for station ID on the Red Sox blogging network.

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UConn Football links

McCUMMINGS TO UCONN [Boston Herald]

Villains in the Big East [Big East Blog – ESPN.com]

Husky Tracks: Quick Look At UConn Football Practice [Hartford Courant]

Folson happy back on field [New Haven Register]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Getting to the core of things [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

UConn’s Maya Moore Not Expected To Be On Initial U.S. List [Hartford Courant]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Rudy Gay: Taking it to the next level [UConn Huskies Basketball]