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Rockies Journal: Who’ll return to the playoffs first, Broncos or Rox?

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

It no doubt infuriates Broncos fans to be lumped in the same category as the Rockies, but here we are.The 1-5 Broncos are well on their way to missing the playoffs for their eighth consecutive season. During that span, their winning percentage is a paltry .375. This season will mark the second-longest playoff drought in franchise history, trailing only the Broncos teams from 1960-76.The Rockies have missed the playoffs for five straight years, during which time they’ve had a .421 winning percentage. The 103 losses this season set a low-water mark for the franchise.Both teams have marquee players who have been massive disappointments.Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson, as my colleague, Mark Kiszla pointed out, is not the answer. And it can’t be forgotten that the Broncos sent two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick and three players to Seattle for Wilson and a fourth-round pick in March 2022. Six months later, they inked him to a massive five-yea...

Deion Sanders defends CU Buffs star Travis Hunter after uneven return in stunning loss to Stanford: “The plays he made kept us in the game”

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

BOULDER — Even the Buffs’ do-everything Superman proved mortal on a frightful Friday the 13th at Folsom Field.In wideout/cornerback Travis Hunter’s return following a three-game absence due to a lacerated liver, the sophomore was a catalyst on offense but stumbled on defense in the Buffs’ stunning 46-43 double-overtime loss to Stanford.On the one hand: Hunter racked up a team-leading and career-high 13 catches for 140 yards, with two TDs. Hunter’s first score put CU ahead early as the home team took a 29-0 halftime lead, and his second TD grab in the second half stopped a string of four unanswered Stanford TDs.On the other: Hunter, along with the rest of the CU secondary, played a central role in the Buffs’ second-half meltdown. He was burned by Stanford wideout Elic Ayomanor twice for TDs in the Cardinal comeback, and Hunter was also flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty early in the fourth quarter that turned a would-be field goal attempt into an eve...

Keeler: CU Buffs’ Deion Sanders looked out of ideas. Travis Hunter looked gassed. After collapse vs. Stanford, has clock struck midnight on Boulder’s Cinderella?

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

BOULDER — When Deion Sanders demanded his theme music, the Buffs played “Yakety Sax.” If Travis Hunter ran for 140 yards, Charles Kelly rambled for at least 220, arms waving furiously, as if trying to hail the last taxi in Times Square.“If you’re gonna point the fingers, point it at me, because if I’m allowing it, it should be on me, not (Kelly),” Coach Prime said of his veteran defensive coordinator after CU squandered a 29-0 halftime lead against Stanford in a 46-43 double overtime loss.“Put it on me. We go over this stuff. And there are times where you know what group is in … what group you’re on, but you have a lapse of understanding in those crucial moments. Right now, we’re not built for the moment. We’re not built for the moment.”For 30 minutes, the Buffs almost looked built for the College Football Playoff, a fireball of speed and swagger. For the next 30, they looked as if Karl Dorrell had never l...

America's top diplomat calls for protecting civilians as Israel readies an expected assault on Gaza

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Saturday for protecting civilians in the Gaza Strip and Israel as he intensified his diplomatic outreach across the Middle East and beyond to rally an international response to prevent the Israel-Hamas war from expanding.Blinken met with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Riyadh before stopping in the United Arab Emirates as he sought ways to help civilians trapped in between the fighting and to address the growing humanitarian crisis. He also called his Chinese counterpart as Palestinians struggled to flee from areas of Gaza targeted by the Israeli military before an expected land offensive.His efforts reflect the international concern about the number of civilians at risk and the potential ramifications of a prolonged war as Israel told Gaza residents to move south and Hamas urged people to remain in their homes. The Biden administration — from President Joe Biden to his Pentagon chie...

'Ring of fire' solar eclipse cuts across the Americas, stretching from Oregon to Brazil

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

A rare “ring of fire” eclipse of the sun cuts across the Americas on Saturday, stretching from Oregon to Brazil, and huge crowds were on the move before dawn in cities, rural areas and national parks to try to catch a glimpse of it.For the small towns and cities along its narrow path, there was a mix of excitement, worries about the weather and concerns they'd be overwhelmed by visitors flocking to see the celestial event, also called an annular solar eclipse. Clouds and fog threatened to obscure the view of the eclipse in some western states, including California and Oregon.The partial eclipse will begin in Southern California at 8:08 a.m., reach a maximum at 9:25 a.m., and end at 10:51 a.m., according to the University of California, Irvine Department of Physics and Astronomy.Unlike a total solar eclipse, the moon doesn’t completely cover the sun during a ring of fire eclipse. When the moon lines up between Earth and the sun, it leaves a bright, blazing border.Saturday’s path: Ore...

Man fatally shot in Oakland’s 100th homicide of the year

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

OAKLAND — The city reached 100 confirmed homicides Friday night with an East Oakland shooting that left a 30-year-old man dead and two other men wounded, one of whom was in grave condition, authorities said.The name of the man killed has not yet been released.  Police said he was an Oakland resident who lived in the area of the shooting.Police are trying to confirm the name of the man in grave condition at a hospital.  The other victim, a 32-year-old man, was treated and released at a hospital.The shooting happened about 10:36 p.m. Friday outside in the 2500 block of 34th Avenue.Police said the three men knew each other and were hanging out when they were confronted by at least one other man who began shooting at them.The 30-year-old man died at the scene and the others were taken to hospitals.Investigators are trying to confirm a motive for the shooting and determine if all the men were the intended targets.  No suspect information was released and no arrests have been made.T...

Alameda County ‘Teacher of the Year,’ a PE coach at juvenile hall, placed on leave in sexual misconduct investigation

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

OAKLAND — A PE teacher at Alameda County’s juvenile hall has been placed on leave pending the outcome of a criminal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct started by incarcerated girls, this news organization has learned.Matthew Keith Campbell, 60, was placed on leave late last month after two girls reported that they recognized him as a “john” from when the minors were being trafficked on International Boulevard in Oakland, according to multiple sources. The girls’ statements have triggered concurrent administrative and criminal investigations, run by the county and Oakland police respectively.Campbell teaches physical education at the Butler Academic Center at Alameda County’s Juvenile Hall. He was honored last year as one of the Alameda County Office of Education’s “Teachers of the Year,” which lauded his 30-year teaching career and described him as a dedicated educator who goes out of his way to help failing chil...

Bay Area high school football roundup 2023: Best of Week 8 action

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

Welcome back to the Bay Area News Group’s high school football roundup.Here, you’ll find all the details from the weekend’s action in this news organization’s coverage area, which encompasses teams that play in leagues based primarily in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.Check back every Saturday during the season for scores, highlights and top performers, updated throughout the day.If you have not already, please subscribe here for complete digital access all season long. Your contributions keep us going.On to the roundup … Ranked teamsNo. 2 De La Salle 33, No. 3 San Ramon Valley 27, OTThe showdown between the best teams in the North Coast Section lived up to the pregame hype, and then exceeded it, as the schools went into overtime after San Ramon Valley’s rally from down 15 points in the final four minutes of regulation. SRV quarterback Luke Baker rushed for 181 yards and threw for 204, and Derrick Blanche scored the winning touchdown in an unforgetta...

Photos: Bay Area high school football Week 8, 2023

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

De La Salle 33, San Ramon Valley 27See a photo you like? Click Here to see these and more and to purchase high-quality prints or a keepsake photos on mugs, buttons, greeting cards, and more.De La Salle’s Anthony Dean (26) strips the ball away from San Ramon Valley’s Evan Economos (14) for the interception during the third quarter of their game at San Ramon Valley High School in Danville, Calif., on Friday, Oct. 13, 2023. De La Salle defeated San Ramon Valley in overtime 33-27. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle head coach Justin Alumbaugh celebrates after Derrick Blanche (22) scores the game winning touchdown in overtime at San Ramon Valley High School in Danville, Calif., on Friday, Oct. 13, 2023. De La Salle defeated San Ramon Valley in overtime 33-27. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle’s Derrick Blanche (22) scores a touchdown against San Ramon Valley in the second quarter of their game at San Ramon Valley High School in Danville, C...

When Harvey Milk fought the culture wars at this Bay Area high school

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:00:20 GMT

On a September evening in 1978, Harvey Milk left his home base in San Francisco’s Castro district, the epicenter of America’s gay rights movement, to venture out to the East Bay suburbs.Milk’s destination was Walnut Creek’s Northgate High, where he fought that era’s version of the culture wars and helped change the course of LGBTQ+ history in the final two months of his life. In front of a live TV audience, San Francisco’s first openly gay supervisor artfully debated John Briggs, a conservative Orange County state senator, who was pushing an initiative that would prevent LGBTQ+ teachers and their supporters from working in California’s public schools. It proved to be such a pivotal moment in gay rights history that the high school will commemorate it with a public ceremony on Monday, Oct. 16.News accounts show that the charismatic Milk crushed it in the debate, effectively countering Briggs’ claims that “homosexuals want your children.” Two months later, the “Mayor of Ca...