This just in: Wichita State is really, really good

It was March 5, 2011 and the second-seeded Wichita State Shockers were upset by Indiana State in the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference basketball tournament. The Sycamores went on to upset top seed Missouri State in the championship game to earn the Valley’s automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.

The Shockers were 24-8 at that point and Missouri State had a 25-8 mark. Both teams deserved bids to the Big Dance, but both were left out. The Bears fell in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament, where they received a No. 3 seed. The Shockers were dealt another slap in the face when they were given a four seed in the NIT.

Motivated by, first a snub and then a spurn, the Shockers blew their way through the NIT field – winning a semifinal game against Washington State by 31 points before handily defeated top seed Alabama in the championship game.

Fast forward to this March and the Shockers are the top seed in the Arch Madness Valley tournament. They’ve been on a tear all season – ranked 14th in the country with a 26-4 mark heading into the tournament after going 16-2 in league play.

“It was definitely motivation, especially for the seniors,” Shockers senior guard Joe Ragland said of last year’s NCAA snub. “Last year we felt we had a great team to get in the tournament. That was last year. We didn’t get in, so this year was our motivation, and that’s why we work so hard.”

Their first game in the 2012 Valley tournament was a chance at revenge against the Sycamores.

“It was definitely on our mind,” Shockers guard Toure Murry said of last year’s loss. “It was one of the top thoughts in our mind. Indiana State, the defending champion, to get to the championship, we’ve got to defeat the defending champion.”

Indiana State, the eight seed this year, won Thursday night’s opening-round game against Southern Illinois. But they were overmatched and outgunned against the Shockers on Friday. Wichita State jumped out to a 20-3 lead, led 40-19 at halftime and cruised to a 72-48 victory.

“They’re probably the best team we’ve played all year,” said Indiana State guard Jake Odum, the MVC tourney MVP last year. “They were tough last year, too. They’ve stepped up a little bit. They went to the NIT last year and they’re just out to get everybody. They’ve got one goal in mind and that’s to win this tournament. They’re going to make some noise in the NCAA tournament also.”

Sycamores coach Greg Lansing said the Shockers are an “outstanding” team who “played with a chip on their shoulder” all season.

“They put us on our heels from the start and didn’t let up,” Lansing said. “Coming from somebody who was in the NCAA tournament a year ago, they’re as good as any team we’ve played. As far as I’m concerned, they’re as good as any team I’ve seen on TV.

“They galvanized after last year, going to the NIT, and didn’t get to the NCAA tournament. They’re tough, they’re deep, they’re athletic. They come at you in waves. Being around the league, even in my seven years at Iowa, playing Drake and (Northern Iowa), this is the best team I’ve seen in the league. They’re really, really good and they’re as good as anybody they’re going to play in the NCAA tournament as well.”

For the first time in tournament history, the Valley tournament has two teams ranked in the top 25. The other – second-seeded Creighton – is ranked 24th in the coaches’ poll and 25th by the Associated Press. Wichita and Creighton appear to be locks for an at-large bid in the NCAA tournament. Should a huge upset occur and neither the Shockers nor Blue Jays win the MVC tourney title, the Valley could have three teams dancing for the first time since 2006.

That being said, the Shockers don’t want to leave anything to chance. They have no intentions on relying on the NCAA tournament selection committee to deem them worthy of a ticket to the Big Dance. The Shockers plan on punching that ticket themselves Sunday afternoon.

Was this Chris Lowery's final season at SIU?

Following Southern Illinois’ 66-51 loss to Indiana State Thursday night in the first round of the Missouri Valley Conference men’s basketball tournament, speculation about Chris Lowery’s future as SIU’s head coach began almost immediately.

Lowery has been the Salukis coach since 2004 and had the team in the NCAA tournament in each of his first three seasons at the helm. That stretch included a run to the Sweet 16 in 2007, when the Salukis finished 29-7. Since then, the SIU program has been in decline. The Salukis made it to the NIT in 2008, but have failed to finish above .500 since.

The 2010-11 season was disappointing, to say the least. The Salukis were never able to overcome injuries, suspensions and player defections. The result was an 8-23 record and a ninth-place finish in the 10-team MVC.

“It was frustrating and disappointing,” said Lowery, who has a career record of 145-116 since taking over for Matt Painter. “We’ve had a lot of success here. There is a lot of disappointment. It hurts all of us.”

Lowery was never given credit for his early success. Critics said he won with players recruited by Painter, SIU’s head coach for one year, and Bruce Weber, who preceded Painter and led the Salukis to the Sweet 16 in 2002. Even as the losses mounted for Lowery and his seat got hotter, Lowery never let outside speculation creep into the locker room.

“There’s been nothing. The focus has been on our team,” Lowery said. “It would be real easy for me to talk about what’s being speculated, but speculation leads to anxiety with the players. We didn’t play like we had anxiety this whole month because I really didn’t allow them to be affected by anything that was said.”

Lowery said his biggest disappointment was that his two seniors – Justin Bocot and Mamadou Seck – never had the chance to play in the NCAA tournament.

“That’s the most special thing you can do as a college basketball player,” Lowery said just moments after Seck was asked to reflect on his career in Carbondale. The 6-foot-7 Senegal native and transfer from Southeastern Illinois broke down in tears while saying that his goal was to lead the Salukis to the NCAA tourney and he wasn’t able to accomplish that objective.

Lowery said he was looking forward to Bocot and Seck graduate, but he did not say he was looking forward to coaching at SIU next season. He did eventually say that, because he has two years left on his contract, he expects to be SIU’s coach for the 2012-2013 season.

SIU athletics director Mario Moccia said he has not talked about Lowery’s future, but that conversation is planned.

“It just ended,” he said of the season in the tunnel at Scottrade Center. Moccia will remain in St. Louis until Sunday and he and Lowery are expected to speak sometime next week. Lowery said he appreciated school officials to let he and his staff “work” and waiting until season’s end to discuss his future.

“My job was to try to get this team better,” Lowery said. “Mario and I will meet like we always do at the end of the year and that’s when it will be discussed.

“I’ve been here a long time in different capacities. I’d like to see this thing turn around because I am competitive.

“I’m always going to be loyal to SIU, no matter what. Business is business. Understanding that, I’m going to handle myself with integrity. I’m not going to blow up. I’m not going to belittle anything that has to do with SIU because that’s not me. The easiest thing to do would be to cause controversy. It is what it is. I know I’ve worked hard for this place and that’s what I want people to think about. Sometimes that gets lost in the shuffle when we don’t have the type of seasons that our fan base is used to having.”

The Valley deserves multiple bids to the Big Dance

The Missouri Valley Conference men’s basketball tournament started Thursday night with Indiana State and Southern Illinois playing in the opening game at Scottrade Center.

This is the fifth straight year I’m covering the Valley tournament and it's the first time during that stretch that the Valley appears to have two locks for the NCAA tournament.

Top seed Wichita State, which is ranked 14th in the coaches poll with a record of 26-4 (16-2 in the MVC), and 24th-ranked Creighton (25-5, 14-4) are the favorites to meet in Sunday’s tournament championship game. But what if one of those teams gets knocked off Friday night or Saturday afternoon? Could the Valley get three teams to the Big Dance? The answer to that question should be yes.

Joe Mitch, the Valley’s associate commissioner, said “it’s always possible” that one of the team could get left out because of “the human factor.” In other words, the NCAA selection committee and its members from the so-called “major” conferences could snub their nose at a mid-major team, regardless of rank. But if the committee truly does want to have the best 68 teams in the field, then the Shockers and Blue Jays are in today – regardless of what happens over the weekend.

“Their RPI is very good, their national ranking, strength of schedule – all those things are positive,” Mitch pointed out. “It would be a major upset if either one does not win the tournament to not get in with an at-large bid. It would just be a big surprise.”

Mitch said that getting three teams into the NCAA tournament would benefit the league financially, but he added that he’d like for the conference’s best team to head to the Big Dance on a winning streak.

“You want your best team to move forward on a winning note, on a high, and coming off a championship,” Mitch told me before Thursday’s opening game. “My experience is that most teams that do that have success in the NCAA tournament.”

There is another “Valley” conference that has a ranked team and the possibility of receiving multiple bids. Murray State, which was ranked as high as seventh in the country before an upset loss to Tennessee State ended its run at perfection at 23-0, enters the Ohio Valley Conference tournament with a 28-1 record. The Racers are ranked ninth in the coaches poll (11th by the Associated Press). Should another team win the OVC tournament, it’d be a shame if the Racers get left out of the NCAA tourney.

“With upsets, you’ve got that possibility,” Mitch stated matter-of-factly. “Murray State has proven all year that they deserve to be in as an at-large should they not win (the OVC tournament). That’s just part of the business. You accept the fact that you’re going to have upsets. Teams that may not be considered capable of winning a game go on to win a conference championship over somebody who might be more favored.

“You don’t see too many mid-major conferences get multiple bids.”

In fact, the Valley has not had more than one team dancing in March since 2007. The conference had four teams in the Big Dance in 2006 and three in 2005. Since then, though, teams like Missouri State and Illinois State have been hung out to dry despite impressive tourney resumes.

Should the unthinkable happen and Creighton or Wichita get left out of the NCAA tourney field, I asked Mitch, “How pissed off would you be?” He didn’t answer and instead laughed. We both knew what he wanted to say.

“This is a good year for us, with two teams in the top 25,” Mitch said. Hopefully the NCAA selection committee will see it that way a week from Sunday.

Kalil destined to be an offensive lineman from the start

Matt Kalil was raised to be an offensive lineman. Even if he wanted to play another position on his football team, his dad wouldn’t allow it.
There are different ways to raise your son to be a professional athlete and groom him for success. Tiger Woods’ father put a golf club in his hand when he was three years old. Brett Favre, the son of a coach, was dressing in a football uniform at an early age. Todd Marinovich’s dad went to the extreme by trying to build the great quarterback.

Frank Kalil, the father of Ryan and Matt, kept it simple. Frank, a former offensive lineman and 1982 draft pick by the Buffalo Bills, was going to help his sons follow in his footsteps and hopefully go beyond.

“What my dad did was do a great job of raising me and my brother,” Matt Kalil told media members last Thursday at the NFL Combine. “He definitely didn’t force football on us. It was definitely a choice we wanted to make. But he made it clear that we could play whatever sport we wanted to. And if we wanted to play football and if he wanted his help, it was going to be his way or he wasn’t going to help us. So definitely that was a choice we made. And that’s what made it so great for us. We wanted to play football and we love the sport. It also helps to have a father who’s been in the NFL and who has been through all the experiences. Especially for me, it’s helped to have a brother who’s been through that. It’s a closer age gap.”

Matt’s brother, Ryan, was a second-round draft pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2007 out of the University of Southern California. Ryan has since developed into a Pro Bowl center – earning a trip to Hawaii each of the last three seasons and a new contract as the league’s highest-paid center.

Matt is poised to be a high first-round pick – his likely landing spot is third overall to the Minnesota Vikings. He played left tackle at USC and helped protect quarterback Matt Barkley during Barkley’s record-setting 2011 season. How did the Kalil brothers develop into high-caliber players? Dad spent “hours on end going to the park and working on my technique,” Matt explained. When the time in the park was done, they went home and watched film.

“Going over film with my dad and basically doing everything I can to become a better player, that’s what he taught us,” Matt said. “There’s always something in your game you can improve. You strive for perfection. You can never get there. But you set a high goal for yourself to become a better player.”

Matt was one of the players who helped himself at the combine, which finished today with Central Florida’s Josh Robinson probably having the best day. Vic Ketchman, the senior writer for the Green Bay Packers website, did a great job of listing the weekend’s winners and losers.

Matt Kalil did everything that was expected of him. He was strong in the weight room, ran well and showed scouts how athletic he really is for a 306-pound tackle. That came as no surprise because when you look at the tape, Matt dominates and also relished the time he played special teams. He had a knack for blocking field goals for the Trojans.

“It was definitely something I wanted to do. I volunteered for it,” he said. “As an offensive lineman, you don’t get any fame. You’re not scoring touchdowns. So blocking a few field goals that was more than enough for me. Especially at Utah, blocking a field goal to win the game, that’s probably the highlight of my college career.”

Matt didn’t even start taking football seriously until he was about 15. That’s when Frank began those coaching sessions at Butterfield Park in Corona, Calif.

“For my dad, ‘Let’s play football’ means let’s go do kick steps and let’s work o-line drills,” Matt said. “I tried to play tight end as a freshman and my dad went on the field and said ‘No, he’s playing left tackle.’ That pretty much ended that dream.

“I would have been a sweet tight end. Maybe like an Anthony Munoz catching touchdowns.”

Frank Kalil would only bring one football to the park, and it wasn’t for his sons to catch them.

“For my brother to snap and then beat me up playing d-line,” Matt said with a laugh. “That’s about it.

“My brother was coming out of high school and about to go to the USC camp, and me and Chris Deluca were one-on-one dummies and getting tossed around. Bloody knees and all that, basically getting beaten up on every drill.”

And now all that hard work is paying off and Matt Kalil is on the brink of being paid extremely well.

Wilson trying to be the next great 'short' quarterback

What Drew Brees has done in the National Football League has all-but erased the stigma that shorter quarterbacks can’t play. 
Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson referred to the New Orleans Saints field general several times during his 10-minute press conference on Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

That wasn’t a coincidence. Wilson has a point to make. He wants to be the next quarterback to further erase that stigma.

Russell Wilson

“Honestly, I believe the height’s not a factor at all,” Wilson told me. “I have great feet in the pocket; Drew Brees has unbelievable feet. I watched tons and tons of film on him, and the things he does in the pocket are just remarkable. So I truly believe the height’s really not a factor. You have to be able to understand the offense, know the whys of football. Play with rhythm and timing and just be athletic. I definitely believe I’m one of the most athletic guys here, without a doubt in my mind, and so I think that gives me an advantage. I have a high, quick release, which when you play with rhythm and timing, it’s hard to stop.”

Wilson measured in just a shade under 5-foot-11 and 204 pounds. Brees, who has won a Super Bowl and broke Dan Marino’s single-season record for passing yards last year, is an even 6-feet tall and 207 pounds. Wilson is a stellar athlete who was a fourth-round draft pick by Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies in 2010. He led Wisconsin to a Big Ten title and second consecutive Rose Bowl berth last season following a great three-year stretch at North Carolina State. Wilson was the Atlantic Coast Conference’s rookie of the year in 2008, set the NCAA’s all-time record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception in 2009 and finished his collegiate career with 31 wins, more than 11,000 passing yards and 109 touchdown passes to only 30 interceptions.

“I’m a 5-foot-11 quarterback, but I believe I can make every single throw on the football field,” Wilson said. “There’s not too many 5-11, 6-foot quarterbacks, but Drew Brees for example is a guy I truly admire. He’s a great community guy, guy that’s obviously tremendous on the football field, has broken a lot of records, and has tremendous faith as well. I truly believe that the Lord put me here for a reason.”

Before Brees, there was former Boston College star and 1984 Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie – who is only 5-10. Flutie had to go to the Canadian Football League to prove that his outstanding college career wasn’t a fluke. A 1985 draft pick by the United States Football League’s New Jersey Generals, Flutie was later dealt to the NFL’s Chicago Bears and traded to New England before taking his talents north. Flutie won three Grey Cup championships in the CFL before he returned to the NFL with the Buffalo Bills. Flutie won 10 games in his first season with the Bills and then was actually a teammate of Brees in 2001 in San Diego. Flutie finished his career with the Patriots and had a record of 37-28 as an NFL starter, including a 22-9 home mark.

“I’ve watched Doug Flutie, I’ve talked to him several times as well,” Wilson told me on Friday. “He’s a great player obviously and a great human being. And I’ve watched other guys, too. I’ve watched clips of Fran Tarkenton, guys all across the league. But I’ve also watched taller quarterbacks, too. I just try to watch the best. Obviously Doug Flutie was one of the best of his time, so it’s pretty interesting to watch him and the way he plays, but also guys like Drew Brees as well.”

Wilson will do everything at the combine this weekend and, when the quarterbacks, backs and receivers do their on-the-field workouts on Sunday, he hopes to prove to everybody there that he is a complete quarterback.

“I think more than anything, just trying to show my leadership, the talent that I have obviously running, obviously throwing as well,” Wilson said. “They’ve seen a lot of film already; they’ve done a lot of studying and know that I can make all the throws. I’m just trying to reassure that I’m one of the best players, and I definitely have all the confidence in the world in myself and my abilities and I believe I’ve shown that over my career.

“The Senior Bowl definitely helped, being around the best talent across the country, and being in the venue of all the best players being around you, and some of the best coaches obviously from the NFL. That was a great experience. Also, I played at N.C. State with a West Coast style offense that was very, very similar to the (Minnesota) Vikings’ offense and the calls and everything. So I was really, to be honest with you, really used to that style of offense, and then obviously the University of Wisconsin playing in a completely different style of offense, that really helped me out as well. So I think that gave me an advantage.”

Because of that, Wilson said his height has not been an issue or topic of discussion in the meetings he’s had with NFL teams – and he said he’s met with nearly every one of them.

A cynic may say Wilson is just blowing smoke up the collective six of the media, but even Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson and St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher said height isn’t a factor. If a guy can make plays, he can make plays.

Whether it was in Raleigh or in Madison, Wilson has proven that he can.

'Football junkie' is what's right in pro sports

The NFL offseason has officially arrived for every team. While most players use this time to travel or just take time off to spend with family, St. Louis Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis has been at Rams Park almost every day.

He was there last week to greet new assistant head coach Dave McGinnis. He was one of two players - quarterback Sam Bradford being the other - to attend the introductory press conference last month for new head coach Jeff Fisher. Laurinaitis has met with defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and, on Thursday, he strolled into the media room to grab a bottle of water out and chat with the three reporters who were there - Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Tony Softli of 101 ESPN and me.

Aside from his genuine congeniality, which every member of the St. Louis media enjoys, what stood out to me Thursday was what Laurinaitis was carrying. He was toting around a 2011 New Orleans Saints defensive playbook. Why would Laurinaitis have that in his possession? Not because he's planning a move south. No. It's because Williams came to the Rams from New Orleans, where he was the Saints defensive coordinator for the past three seasons.

Most NFL players take this time of the year off, but not Laurinaitis. He's at Rams Park studying Williams' playbook to get a jump on 2012. Laurinaitis calls himself a football junkie and his love of the game is what stood out to McGinnis in their conversation. It's also very evident to anybody who talks football with Laurinaitis.

The former Ohio State star said a day after the Rams' season finale that he would take a few days off to "play an appropriate amount of hours of video games" before getting back to work. Assuming he followed through on that, the only other time Laurinaitis took off was to spend a few days last week with Bradford visiting troops in Kuwait.

Laurinaitis returned to St. Louis to get his football fix. Bradford went on to visit an old college buddy now living in Thailand. Laurinaitis' father, Joe, was Animal of the legendary pro wrestling tag team The Legion of Doom. Even with a celebrity dad, James' trip to Kuwait was the first time in his life he had been out of the United States.

Pro athletes often draw cynical ridicule for being overpaid and many of them are. Former NFL star Warren Sapp once said he gets paid a king's ransom to play a boy's game. He's right, but when you talk with James Laurinaitis, you don't think about how much money he's making. All you think about is what a pleasant conversation you are having. Laurinaitis is a selfless human being who uses his fame to assist various charities. He is what's right in pro sports.

Laurinaitis is planning another international trip soon. He wants to take his father to Lithuania, which is from where the Laurinaitis family has its roots. Joe Laurinaitis has never been to Lithuania and there's his son, yet again using his wealth to do something nice for somebody else.

Chances are, they won't be gone long. After about a week, James will be going through football withdrawals. A junkie needs his fix.

Pujols and Fielder should rememember to thank McGwire and Sosa

Prince Fielder is leaving the Milwaukee Brewers after six seasons and is getting a nice, big fat, nine-year, $214 million contract from the Detroit Tigers.

When I heard Fielder was headed to Detroit, my first though was, "Oh, well, that fits. His dad (Cecil) played there."

But when I watched ESPN's Outside the Lines on Wednesday and one of the analysts said baseball is as strong and financially healthy as it's ever been, I had a different thought. Why is baseball so healthy right now and has been for the last 10-plus years?

When Major League Baseball canceled the World Series in 1994 because of a labor dispute, what followed was three seasons of mediocre attendance and financial struggles for most teams. Then came the 1998 season and the home run hit parade put on by both Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

Those two have since been ostracized for their supposed use of steroids that led to McGwire hitting 70 home runs and Sosa 66. But what is forgotten is that Sosa and McGwire saved baseball. Attendance spiked in 1998 because fans wanted to see the duo wherever they played. Baseball was back and McGwire and Sosa were the catalysts.

Fast forward a couple years and Texas gives Alex Rodriguez the first-ever $200 million contract. The Rangers couldn't handle the contract and then dealt A-Rod to the New York Yankees. Then other teams had to keep up and salaries spiraled out of control. And now we have Albert Pujols leaving St. Louis for a mega-contract from the Anaheim Angels and Fielder's deal with the Tigers. A pair of contracts worth more than $200 million in less than a month and the same pundits who want to keep McGwire and Sosa (and Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmeiro, etc.) out of the Hall of Fame are lauding the Angels and Tigers for making  free-agent splashes by landing the big fish.

Those hypocrites forget that the Hall of Fame is a museum for the history of baseball. Like it or not, the so-called "Steroid Era" is part of that history. If you keep one of those players out, you keep them all out - the likes of Ken Griffey included. That's not right. Nobody knows for sure who was using and who wasn't using, so you don't discriminate.

You especially don't shun Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. You thank them. You thank them for saving baseball. And Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder and every other player who gets that mega deal need to remember to thank them as well.