ABCDE SPORTS sunday, september 12, 2010 PROFOOTBALL
The age of offense Expect more big numbers in NFL this season. D6
Redskins vs. Cowboys When : 8:20 p.m. Where: FedEx Field TV:WRC (Channel 4),WBAL (Channel 11)
BASEBALL
Under their thumbs Anibal Sanchez and Florida extend their mastery of the Nats. D5
BASKETBALL
Durant leads U.S. to final The Americans will play host Turkey today for the world title. D2
AUTORACING
NASCAR runs late For race coverage from Richmond, visit
washingtonpost.com/sports.
For theHokies, a dark day in Blacksburg
JAMES MADISON STUNS VA. TECH
Turnovers prove costly as Dukes prevail, 21-16
BY MARK GIANNOTTO GRINDER THE STORY BY SALLY JENKINS PHOTO BY JOEL RICHARDSON I
f you really want to know what Mike Shanahan is made of, the answer is: metal shavings. Sawdust. Poured concrete. How does a guy who’s just 5 feet 10 and 175 pounds rise to the top of the NFL and command larger men to do his bidding all these years? By working the job like a shovel, that’s how. Ignore the good suit and corporate haircut, and the bells and
jingles of his seven-inch thick playbook. Strip away the glint of the two Super Bowl rings he won with the Denver Broncos. Forget his $35 million contract. The important thing to remember about the newhead coach of theWashington Redskins is that he punched his way out of the blue-collar industrial suburbs of Chicago. As his father Edward once said, “If only he’d listened to me, he could have been an electrician.” Beneath the sheen of his reputation, Shanahan, 58, is a grinder. Though he is known for the refinement of his offense, the real underpinning of Shanahan’s accomplishments is muscle, years of heavy lifting. Each morning, he’s in the Redskins weight room at 4 a.m., doing reps. A few years ago, he set out to bench press 275 pounds, a hundredmorethan hisownweight—and did. It’s that sweat-soaked quality he’s depending on as he tries to turn around a team that was 4-12 last year and which opens the season against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. “Listen, when he gets done with that locker room, there won’t be
anything left in there but beef,” says Shannon Sharpe, his former tight end with the Broncos. “All beef. Kobe beef.” Shanahan won’t tell you any of this himself.He’s a polite-but-un-
revealing conversationalist who tends to fold his arms across his chest and keep his mouth firmly shut. This isn’t rudeness, but a product of Shanahan’s belief, learned as an Irish-Catholic working- class son, that he was given two ears and just one tongue for a reason. As he remarked in his motivational book, ‘Think Like A Champion,’ “Last time I checked, I never said anything I didn’t already know.” Recently, Shanahan briefed a group of reporters on the Redskins’
practice field. “You guys know how this works,” he said. “You ask questions and I don’t answer them.” Invariably, he gives away less than the opponent. In Denver, he had someone in each NFL city fax him every article in the local papers about the team he was playing
shanahan continued on D8 INSIDE Redskins Gameday
Texas Gov. Rick Perry isn’t conservative about bashing the Redskins. D10
ONLINEFEATURES
6The Shanahan Playbook: Take a look at the Redskin coach’s strategy with our animated analysis.
6Redskins Game Center: Break down every game all season in unprecedented detail using our interactive tool.
6Post Pro Picks: Play The Post’s free, weekly NFL pick ’em game, where you can win great prizes, form groups to play against your friends, see how you fare against our experts or just play for fun.
washingtonpost.com/pro-picks
Scenes from Dallas week From the laundry guy to the owner, Redskins prepare for the opener. D7
Top seed Nadal has little trouble sweeping Youzhny
BY LIZ CLARKE
flushing meadows, n.y.— Ra- fael Nadal did his part, sailing into his first U.S. Open final Sat- urday with a straight-sets victory over Russia’s outclassed Mikhail Youzhny. But Roger Federer, who had
been near flawless these last two weeks in pursuit of a sixth U.S. Open title, came up short, failing to convert two match points against Serbian challengerNovak Djokovic and falling, 5-7, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5. As a result, there will be no
dreamU.S. Open men’s final Sun- day pitting the world’sNo. 1 and 2
blacksburg, va. — Just two weeks ago, the Virginia Tech football team believed it had as good a shot as any to win a national championship. After Saturday, though, the Hokies have towonder if they could even win the Colonial Athletic Associ- ation title. Five days after beginning the
season with a loss to No. 3 Boise State, No. 13 Virginia Tech suf- fered the biggest upset of this young college football season, losing its home opener to divi- sion I-AA James Madison, 21-16, in front of a stunned crowd of 66,233. It was the first time Virginia
Tech Coach Frank Beamer has lost to a division I-AA opponent since taking over the program in 1987. It also was only the second time a division I-AA teamdefeat- ed a ranked division I-A team, the first beingwhenAppalachian State shocked No. 5 Michigan in 2007. James Madison senior quar-
terback Drew Dudzik (Cent- reville High) scored the game- winning touchdown early in the fourth quarter on a 12-yard run, capping a Dukes comeback that began with them trailing 16-7 early in the second half. “It’s embarrassing. Words
hokies continued on D14 DON PETERSEN/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Coach Frank Beamer suffered his first loss to a division I-AA team while at Virginia Tech.
INSIDE
I-AA battery Maryland takes full advantage of lower-division Morgan State with a 62-3 victory, the most points scored in a game by the Terrapins since 1975. D13
First option: Defense While quarterback Ricky Dobbs and the Navy offense struggle against Georgia Southern, the defense carries the Mids to a 13-7 victory. D13
ONLINE
Cavs play late Coverage of Virginia’s game at Southern California can be found at
washingtonpost.com /sports.
Djokovic stuns Federer to reach U.S. Open final
players against each other. That had been the story line tennis fans had clamored for since the draw was unveiled, eager to see the 24-year-oldNadal, at the peak of his powers, square off against Federer, who, if not still at his peak at 29, is railing in regal fashion against a barely percepti- ble decline. Djokovic stopped Federer
short with his daring, energetic play, yanking the Swiss champion from one side of the court to the other and blasting away at his vaunted forehand until it be- trayed him one time too many. After 3 hours 44 minutes on
court, Federer sent one last fore- hand into the net (his 66th and final unforced error), sealing the victory for Djokovic, who re- sponded with dazed disbelief. As his parents embraced in the
u.s. open continued on D3 l Clijsters romps to 2nd straight women’s title. D3 D EZ SU
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