Ingram leads No. 1 Alabama to 24-20 come-from-behind victory over No. 10 Arkansas | al.com

 AL FOOTBALL, LATEST SPORTS NEWS, News  No Responses »
Sep 272010
 

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas has a Heisman Trophy candidate in quarterback Ryan Mallett.

Alabama has a Heisman Trophy winner in running back Mark Ingram.

The candidate put on quite a passing display Saturday for No. 10 Arkansas, but the Heisman winner made the plays when it mattered most as he led top-ranked Alabama (4-0) to a 24-20 come-from-behind victory over the Razorbacks (3-1).

Ingram ran 24 times for 157 yards and two touchdowns.

Mallett’s passing — 25 for 38 for 359 yards, three interceptions — helped the Razorbacks take a 20-7 lead midway through the third quarter, but a pass on third-and-11 from his own 19-yard line late in the fourth quarter was intercepted by Alabama free safety Robert Lester.

It was Lester’s second big interception of the game, and he returned it to the Razborbacks’ 12-yard line.

From there, Ingram ran three times, the last for 1 yard and the go-ahead touchdown.

Dre Kirkpatrick intercepted a Mallett pass to end Arkansas’ last chance. It was the Tide’s third interception of the game.

Ingram had run 54 yards for Alabama’s first touchdown, but the Tide trailed 17-7 at halftime.

Arkansas had stunned the Tide from the start, going 74 yards on the first two plays of the game for a quick touchdown.

The victory extended Alabama’s winning streak to 18 games and its string of consecutive regular-season victories to 28. The Tide has not lost since falling 31-17 to Utah on Jan. 2, 2009 in the Sugar Bowl. It had not lost in the regular season since falling 17-10 on Nov. 24, 2007 at Auburn.

via Ingram leads No. 1 Alabama to 24-20 come-from-behind victory over No. 10 Arkansas | al.com.

 Posted by at 10:55 am

Drew Brees’ popularity is as high as ever in New Orleans: Saints First-and-10 | NOLA.com

 LATEST SPORTS NEWS, NEW ORLEANS SAINTS, News  No Responses »
Sep 242010
 

I realize the coverage of New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees can be a bit syrupy these days.

The Onion even took a satirical jab at New Orleans’ love affair with the Saints star quarterback in a recent feature.

But it’s hard not to genuflect on Brees. He’s playing the position as well as anyone in the history of the game.

Brees isn’t off to the high-flying start he had a year ago but he’s still playing at a very high level.

Here are some interesting numbers about him as he heads into the NFC South showdown against the Falcons on Sunday at the Superdome:

The 49ers game marked the sixth consecutive game for Brees – including the 2009 postseason — without an interception, a streak of 241 pass attempts.

The streak dates to the second quarter of the Dallas game on Dec. 19, 2009, when Michael Jenkins picked off his pass intended for Devery Henderson.

If Brees gets through the Falcons game without an interception, it would mark the first time in his Saints career he’s gone four consecutive regular-season games without an interception.

The only start he’s missed in his Saints career was last season’s finale against Carolina, when he was inactive because the club didn’t need him to play. Otherwise, he’s started 65 out of 66 games.

In fact, Brees would have started 101 consecutive games in his career but his streak was snapped twice because of “meaningless” season finales. He also sat out the 2004 finale for the Chargers.

And this one, courtesy of ESPN Stats & Info: Brees finished the 49ers game with a 108.9 passer rating. That’s his sixth consecutive game with a rating over 100 and the 29th game he’s done that since 2007. That makes him the leader in the league (one game more than Philip Rivers in games with passer ratings over 100 since 2007.

via Drew Brees’ popularity is as high as ever in New Orleans: Saints First-and-10 | NOLA.com.

 Posted by at 9:47 am
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