McMillan Handed His Walking Papers
After four seasons, the Pacers parted ways with Head Coach Nate McMillan. The team was swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Miami Heat for the fourth time in four years. McMillan played 12 seasons as a point guard with Seattle from 1986 to 1998 before coaching there. He then coached at Portland before coming to Indiana. Nate won a very respectable 183 of 319 regular season games during his tenure as the Pacers head man. His team made the playoffs all four years. The problem was that they could never get past the first round. His teams only won three playoff games in four years. Nate is a genuinely good guy and will have no problems finding an assistant coach position. As for the Pacers, the quest to find a coach who can take them to a championship continues.
Job Security as a Head Coach
Jay Hopson stepped down as the head coach of Southern Mississippi after losing SM’s opening game of the season. South Alabama upset the Golden Eagles 32 to 21. Hopson had a very respectable 28-23 regular season record and took the team to three bowl games during his tenure. However, he clashed with the university president over a number of actions he took while coaching the team. Scotty Walden, the offensive coordinator of the team, will be interim head coach.
Colts Roster Cut
There were no real surprises as the team cut down to 53 players. For the first time in quite a while the team will carry three quarterbacks on the active roster as rookie Jacob Eason will be the third quarterback. Rookie tight end Noah Togiai made the team as an undrafted free agent. The Colts will open at Jacksonville next Sunday at 1 p.m. The Horseshoe lost seven straight opening games. Let’s hope that streak is broken.
Bears Quarterbacks
One of the positional battles fans were looking at during training camp was the Bears quarterback battle between Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles. Trubisky was taken in the 2017 draft ahead of Patrick Mahones and Deshaun Watson. He has been a major disappointment. Bears fans were figuring that he was on his way out. The Bears signed Foles in the off season after he struck out at Jacksonville due to injuries. Foles has had an up and down career after being drafted by the Eagles in 2012. He took the Eagles to a Super Bowl in 2018. The Bears are his fifth team. Trubisky is on a long list of quarterbacks whom the Bears fans consider to be the worst quarterbacks ever to play the game. Trubisky will be the starter when the Bears open against the Lions this coming Sunday.
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