ABCDE SPORTS tuesday, august 10, 2010 PROFOOTBALL
A fresh start? Lorenzo Alexander, a multipurpose player most of his Redskins career, gets a shot at outside linebacker. D6
SOCCER
Coach’s status unknown As the U.S. prepares for its match against Brazil, the future of Bob Bradley remains uncertain. D3
Mepersonally, being able to introduce Russ Grimm, that’s the highlight of my football career.” Joe Bugel, on the former Hog’s Hall of Fame induction. D2.
BLOGS,MULTIMEDIAANDCHATS
washingtonpost.com/sports First Things First Today, 9:30 a.m. Tracee Hamilton talks Strasburg, the Redskins and Tiger. The Early Lead Cindy Boren keeps you up to speed on everything blog-worthy and tweet-worthy. Redskins Insider Check out video from FedEx Field to see the offseason changes.
GOLF
Proving grounds The Senior Players Championship will help PGA Tour officials decide if revamped TPC Potomac is fit to host tournament golf. D3
Maryland’s preseason camp opens today SALLY JENKINS Don’t let his age fool you I
t’s fairly easy to spot Kyle Shanahan at Redskins Park: He’s the one who’s so gawky
and kid-faced he could be mistaken for an adolescent. “What’s that ball boy doing on the field?” you wonder. The guy theWashington Redskins are counting on to revive their offense looks like an expert on malt shops, not NFL schemes. If you were seeking someone
to calm your perennial angst about the Redskins, Shanahan would not appear to be that guy, at least not on first impression. At barely 30, younger than DonovanMcNabb, he’s entrusted with redesigning an offense that
hasn’t been effective for the better part of a decade.He better be good—and apparently he is. Some coaches are so steeped
in the game that it’s not just second nature, it’s first nature. Shanahan is one of those.He ate offensive sets with his lunch growing up, and he didn’t learn the game so much as he lived it. You know what he does with his vacations? “When I have time off, I enjoy watching tape,” he says. Mike Shanahan didn’t need an excuse to hire his own son after Kyle’s phenom-like performance last year with theHouston
jenkins continued on D5
Friedgen will feel heat long after summer ends
Maryland football coach is under intense pressure to win
BY ERIC PRISBELL His name is commonly RICKY CARIOTI/THE WASHINGTON POST
“We’re going to be aggressive, and attack whatever the weakness is,” Redskins coordinatorKyle Shanahan said of his newoffense.
grouped with coaches under the most pressure to win this fall, his program is treated like a punch- ing bag in the cutthroat recruit- ing world and his school is seeing season ticket sales drop for a fifth consecutive year. Never before has Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen opened
training camp amid a mood so ominous. When Friedgen meets reportersTuesday—nine months removed from the first 10-loss season in school history — the implications will be clear: This season, his 10th as head coach at his alma mater, will be pivotal for the Friedgen era, and everyone in and around the program knows it.
“I think our coaching staff
feels it,” Friedgen said of the scrutiny. “I don’t think it is some- thingwetalk about daily, but they know the score. I kind of like it like that myself. I kind of enjoy
maryland continued on D3 D EZ SU
STRASBURG RETURNS
With scrutiny on pitching mechanics, Nats and their fans hold their collective breath
CHRISTIAN PETERSEN/GETTY IMAGES And then Strasburg will reach his arm back, BY ADAM KILGORE On Tuesday night, barring another last-
minute twist, Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg will restart his magnificent rookie season.He will walk from the bullpen to the dugout, camera lights flashing. “Seven-Na- tion Army” will blare on the Nationals Park loudspeakers. The FloridaMarlins leadoff hit- ter will dig into the box, the unmistakable buzz Strasburg brings hovering over everything.He will be back.
step forwardand hurl his first pitch, an act that oncebrought only joyandnowprovidesat least a speck of angst. “He may throw like that for 20 years,”
Nationals pitching coach Steve McCatty said. “He may have a problem. I don’t know.” Each of Strasburg’s actions comes under
harsh scrutiny, and his trip to the disabled list because of shoulder inflammation only inten- sified the glare on the most essential piece of his star: his pitching mechanics. Strasburg’s first stintontheDLalso forced theNationals to
face a difficult question: Is Strasburg doing something that has the potential to cause a long-term injury? One major league pitching coach watched
his delivery and spotted a similarity to one of baseball’s most infamous flameouts. One ex- pert studied Strasburg’s motion with four sports scientists and concluded he faced rela- tively small risk.Onemajor league team doctor called Strasburg’s bout with inflammation “a red flag.” The only certainty is that Strasburg’s first health scare as a professional provided the
Nationals an unsettling reminder that their most valuable player relies on themost violent, unpredictable act in sports. “What are perfect mechanics?” McCatty
said. “I don’t know what they are. It’s an unnatural motion for your arm. I think time will tell. I can’t take Strasburg and say, ‘You’ve got to get this move down.’ That’s just how I feel. Everybody’s mechanics are a little bit different.” As Strasburg neared his return, the Nation-
nationals continued on D5
Bethere
whenthe legend grows.
–VS–
Wednesday @ 6:30pm Thursday @ 6:30pm
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