SUCCESS FOR BEN MCCOLLUM OPENS OPPORTUNITY AT THE NEXT LEVEL

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

The same year Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball coach Ben McCollum moved up from being an assistant coach of the Bearcats, I was arriving on campus as college freshman.

From my point of view, McCollum has built men’s basketball at Northwest into an elite NCAA Division II program.

The long list of accolades that McCollum’s program has collected in his ten seasons as a head coach provides a good explanation as to why the current team is undefeated (32-0) going into the NCAA Division II Tournament with a chance to win a second championship in three years.

A championship in 2019 would be McCollum’s magnum opus. The team he coached to a national championship in 2017 was one loss away from perfection. The only blemish was a regular season road loss to Missouri Southern.

The loss was a reality check, but motivated to the Bearcats to finish the season 11-0 en route to the title.

The National Association of Basketball Coached recognized McCollum as the Division II Coach of the Year, and his star junior guard Justin Pitts of Blue Springs, Mo. was selected as National Player of the Year.

Pitts was also elected to the All-American team that season, the second player under McCollum to earn the honor after DeShaun Cooper in 2014.

Senior Joey Witthus, a transfer after two years at Minnesota State, earned the MIAA Player of the Year award, like Cooper and Pitts, and figures to add more post-season honors.

“Joey Witthus is just a big-time college basketball player,” Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. “He can pick-and-pop. He can post. He can drive.”

But at this point in the season the most important award for Witthus and the rest of the Bearcats is a national championship.

If McCollum and the Bearcats finish with a perfect season and second national championship job offers from the next level seem inevitable. As the hiring season starts McCollum’s stock couldn’t be higher.

Check the track record of Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard, the Big 12 Coach of the Year. He spent a few seasons at the Division II level before he was hired by mid-major Arkansas-Little Rock.

Beard’s network and experience under the legendary Bob Knight might’ve created a bigger blip on the radar for a shot to coach Division I because Beard never had a chance to build a resume at the DII level like McCollum. But Beard was only at Arkansas-Little Rock for one season before he got on offer from a power-5 program.

However, McCollum’s roots are deep with Northwest Missouri as an alumnus, and being close to home as an Iowa native.

McCollum’s prospects in the future are reminiscent of former Northwest football coach Adam Dorrel. Dorrel grew up in Maryville, so his roots were real deep in the community. After his second consecutive NCAA Division II Championship, and third as head coach, Dorrel took off to lead the FCS program at Abilene Christian.

Which brings to mind another question: What if the late Henry Iba never left Maryville?

Though McCollum has constructed his legacy at Northwest, and it would be interesting to see if he stays or takes the path of Iba who went to become a coach of a two-time national champion at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) and a U.S. Olympic coach.

SAYING GOODBYE TO CARLOS BELTRAN

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

I have a special fandom toward Carlos Beltran ever since we were paired on-field. I was an honorary lineup participant around ten years old before a Sunday afternoon ballgame, and our short back-and-forth chat sticks with me to this day.

As a ‘90s kid, I only knew about watching the Kansas City Royals when they were at rock bottom. I got used to everyone counting the Royals out of contention before the All Star Break. As grim as the playoff picture seemed, I remember Carlos Beltran as a player who added something positive to a franchise deep in a hole.

Beltran represented one of the players I grew up wanting to like and follow closely. I remember watching Opening Day in 2004 after school. As excited as I was that baseball was back, I’ll never forget Beltran’s walkoff homerun to start the season with a win against the White Sox.

Beltran and second basemen Carlos Febles, Dos Carlos as they became known, made an impact as rookies in 1999. I remember hearing the skeptics and I wondered how long those homegrown players from that time would play together. Or when and if they would be dispersed for greener pastures.

I now realize that Beltran is probably the only Hall of Famer to go through the organization the same time my generation started buying baseball cards and playing little league.

All of those players – Johnny Damon, Jermaine Dye and Mike Sweeney – stood out as my favorites with Beltran. They could hit and score runs, but the back end of the Royals bullpen struggled to protect their leads.

Carlos Beltran won the American League Rookie of the Year in 1999, and there wasn’t much to brag about within the organization after that. It was in the middle of a drought in the Royals farm system, and I wondered if Beltran would ever get to see a winning season during his time in Kansas City. After a 9-0 start in 2003, the Royals finally put together a winning record (83-79) with Beltran seemingly hitting his peak at the age of 26. He hit 26 homers, drove in 100 and stole 41 bases.

Beltran gave fans like myself a reason to go to the ballpark.

But everything I heard as a kid regarding free agency would sadly come true. In the end, the Royals as a small market team chose not to shell out the millions to keep everyone.  The same season he started Opening Day with the walkoff homerun would be his last in Kansas City. I remember hearing about how the Royals had to wheel and deal in mid-season in hopes of getting a decent return for trading Beltran.

It happened when Beltran was traded to Houston. I was upset since I was emotionally invested and hadn’t grasped the business side of the game yet. The young baseball fans like myself held on to Carlos Beltran autographs. I had to hope the best for him after Kansas City.

It’s hard to blame Beltran as a client of Scott Boras to seek free agency. He was searching for a contending team.

It ended up being a long search for the much-coveted World Series ring he earned this year with the Houston Astros. After his 20-year career and seven teams, he deserved a ring. As much as I would’ve loved for him to win it in Kansas City, I was happy for him.

I believe Beltran has the stats comparable to Hall of Famers. With a solid resume, I think he’ll eventually be inducted in Cooperstown. Now that he’s announced his retirement, it’s just a matter of time before he gets the call.

I had a chance to visit Cooperstown for the 2010 induction weekend. When Beltran gets the call, I’d hate to miss it and hope Royals fans join me for my trip back to Cooperstown.

YouTube Yoga Stars Boho Beautiful Host KC Charity Event

Freelance Press Release

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Yogis in Kansas City unroll the welcome mat for YouTube celebrities Boho Beautiful.

The yoga couple, Juliana Semenova and Mark Spicoluk, stop in Kansas City Oct. 4 on their Positive Movement U.S. Tour for an all-level yoga class. Admission is free with donations recommended.

All donations benefit Dogs for Debin, an animal adoption nonprofit organization who will also have animals available for adoption at the event.

The event starts at 4 p.m. at Be Free Family Farm in South Kansas City.  Along with the one hour all-level yoga class the event will include live music.

Boho Beautiful, Semenova and Spicoluk, travel the world inspiring and promoting how to live life with a healthy mind and body. Their journey across the world has millions of views the Toronto couple’s YouTube page with videos posted anywhere from Borneo to Costa Rica.

Kansas City is one of 39 cities on the Positive Movement U.S. Tour that reaches from Washington to Florida.

KANSAS JAYHAWKS STRUGGLE AGAINST THE PAC-12

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

While the Kansas Jayhawks approach the Big 12 Conference season they’ll try to end an ongoing struggle against Pac-12 teams that continues from last season.

The Jayhawks (9-2) can break their three-game losing streak against Pac-12 teams when they play Stanford (6-6) in Sacramento for a neutral site game in Pac-12 territory.

The streak started with the heartbreaking Elite Eight game against Oregon last season when the Jayhawks were expected to use the Sprint Center venue in Kansas City to its advantage and gain a Final Four berth in Glendale, AZ.  Then KU’s struggles against Pac-12 teams spilled over to this season with back-to-back losses.

This month they lost another game at Sprint Center to Washington, Michael Porter Jr.’s first destination before he decided to play for the Missouri Tigers. Without Porter’s presence Washington was tenth in the Pac-12 preseason poll. Then the Pac-12 struggle continued at Allen Fieldhouse against Arizona St., which turned into the Jayhawks’ first nonconference home loss since a 2014 loss to San Diego State.

Arizona State ranked sixth in the Pac- 12 preseason poll, but has been on a crash course to the top, is undefeated with another notable Big 12 win against Kansas State. Breaking the top-5 in the most recent AP poll, the Sun Devils have a group of explosive guards who easily scored over 20-points apiece against Kansas, and sit pretty going into conference play.

With the conference season around the corner, Kansas could use anything positive going forward. And it seems like the focus is to make adjustments with the current lineup. Seven guys get regular playing time right now with pending additions of Billy Preston and Silvio De Sousa. Arizona St. transfer Sam Cunliffe could also make his third appearance of the year against Stanford.

The Jayhawks jumped to a ten-point lead against ASU, and looked like they were going to wash out the bad taste left over from the loss to Washington. Coach Bill Self said, “I thought we were really good, probably the best we’ve played all year the first three or four minutes.”

ASU battled and eventually took the lead during a 15-0 run with about 14:30 left in the second half. From there the Jayhawks looked deflated.

Kansas guard Lagerald Vick led the Jayhawks with 25 points against Arizona State.

“Our defense was as bad as it was against Washington there in the second half after we got a little bit tired,” Self said.

With the win, ASU head coach Bobby Hurley becomes one of five active head coaches to win at Allen Fieldhouse in the Bill Self era.

It was the first time Kansas had lost back-to-back games since the 2013-14 season, and they hadn’t lost three games in a row since the season before that.

The loss to ASU prompted Self to say it’s “the softest team that Kansas has had since (he’s) been there.”

Winning in the last seconds on the road against Nebraska might indicate the team might have got the message.

Before KU, the last time ASU beat a team ranked in the top-5 was No. 4 Stanford in 1998. Not only does KU get a chance to break its Pac-12 losing streak against Stanford, it could also ease the pain of the Jayhawks’ season-ending loss to Stanford in the 2014 NCAA tournament.

HIGH SCHOOL COACH LIVED A DREAM BEFORE UNTIMELY DEATH

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

No coach in America had a college football afternoon like Eric Driskell last December.

After driving through blizzard conditions to Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan., Blue Valley HS football coach Eric Driskell shared a warm smile with the Blue Valley community walking into the stadium to watch the NCAA Division II Football Championship.

In the stadium lobby, groups stopped by and said “Hey, Coach Driskell.”  Covered in multi-layered clothing, Driskell worked to get himself warmed up from the frosty conditions outside while waiting for the rest of his group to arrive. Driskell had plans, rain or shine or on that day snow, to watch his former quarterback, Kyle Zimmerman, start his last game as a senior at Northwest Missouri State for the national title.

With his ticket Driskell was prepared to brave the blizzard conditions. By luck, someone from a dinner party the night before the game had extra suite tickets and invited Driskell to watch the game in their suite.  On that day, who wouldn’t accept?

Meanwhile in sunny Florida, Logan Bretell, another former quarterback under Driskell, started for Baker University in the NAIA championship game.  Two of his former quarterbacks playing for separate college football national titles on the same day.

From his suite seat, Driskell watched Bretell from his smartphone on the ESPN3 telecast.  He ended the Children’s Mercy portion of the day celebrating as Kyle Zimmerman directed the Bearcats to the national championship, a decisive 29-3 win over North Alabama.

While Baker clung to its final chance on a fourth quarter comeback attempt, Driskell headed home. The extreme cold shut down his phone, so he had to hurry to his warm car and get the phone back on to see if a second former Blue Valley quarterback would win a championship that night.

Unfortunately for Driskell, he didn’t see the double-win he hoped for as Saint Francis (Ind.) pulled away 38-17, over Baker.

While the Baker game was wrapping up, Zimmerman was addressing the media beneath the stands at Children’s Mercy Park.  Zimmerman said it was awesome that his high school coach could be in the stands.

“I’m just so glad for everything he’s done for me in my life. He’s shaped me into the man I’ve become today. He’s taught me how to win and compete at a high level,” Zimmerman said after the Championship game.

Both teams didn’t win, but Driskell lived a high school coach’s dream that day.

Link to the Coach Driskell family fund

SUSPECT NAMED AND CHARGES FILED IN SOUTH KC MURDERS

Appeared on KMBZ.com 9/3/14

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Jackson County Prosecution charged Brandon Howell, 34, in the triple murder that took place Tuesday in south Kansas City.

Howe is charged with three counts of first degree murder, and first degree assault of George and Anna Taylor. He's also charged with burglary, armed criminal action, stealing a vehicle, and a felon in possession of a firearm. 

Police arrested Howe overnight at a Motel 6 near Zona Rosa in connection with three assaults that took place Tuesday. Police found a shotgun in his pant leg, and two spent shotgun shells in his pocket. 

After the first report, police were looking for a beige Toyota Highlander. Police found the car near the Motel 6, and Howe had the keys in his pocket.

A woman who was related to two of Tuesday's murder victims in south Kansas City says her family is too shocked to process the tragedy of yesterday. 

Debbie Thompson lost her cousin Darryl Hurst and great aunt Alice L. Hurst when the gunmen broke into their home on Wornall and began shooting. 

Thompson says she can't imagine what would lead someone to kill innocent people.

"Do these people not think of that, you know, these people they're killing have loved ones? Friends and family that love and care about them? Are they just heartless?," she said.

The third victim was identified as 69-year-old Susan Choucroun.

Howe had been accused and aquitted in the deaths of Tabitha Brewer and Nick Travis who disappeared in 1998.

CLOSE CALL AT COLLEGE WORLD SERIES CAUSES CONCERN

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

A University of Louisville batter lost his bat on a swing and sent it flying into the stands Sunday afternoon at the College World Series. The fan hit in the head walked away with a minor cut.

However, the incident raises questions about safety at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha. An NCAA official says it’s being addressed.

Major League Baseball ballparks around the country have added more protective netting in the last two years. The trend stems from a proactive recommendation by the MLB office before the 2016 season.

While every MLB stadium after 2016 has a protective net that extends to the edge of the dugout, the Nationals, Royals and Twins extended their nets to the far end of the dugouts.

The Mets recently announced they will extend nets as soon as the All Star break. After an incident at Yankee Stadium, new legislation in New York could require the stadiums where the Mets and Yankees play to extend nets to the foul poles.

NCAA officials say extending the nets at the home of the College World Series in Omaha has been talked about and in the works to happen next year or the year after. Sunday’s incident adds to the argument to stretch the nets.

Baseball traditionalists might scowl at the change. The extra netting could lower your chance to take home an autograph or a foul ball, but the concept is as constructive as requiring batters to wear helmets when that started in the 1950s.

Millennials who can’t put their phones down have less to worry about, but baseball fans can’t neglect the importance of being alert to the game.

HARAMBE JOINs TAILGATE AT ARROWHEAD

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

Among the thousands of tailgaters before Kansas City Chiefs games at Arrowhead Stadium, the angel of Harambe is present. One group of tailgaters sees to it.

Fifth-year season ticket holder David Schrunk of Kansas City, Mo., hoists his custom-made “RIP Chief Harambe” flag to start every Sunday tailgate.

“For us it’s just kind of a ceremonial thing to open the tailgate; we put the flag up,” Shrunk said. “It’s just a fun way to start the day off.”

Fifth-year season ticket holder David Schrunk flies his Harambe flag at every Chiefs tailgate.

Experienced with the Chief tailgate spectacle, Schrunk knows it gets tricky to round up his group at the same time hordes of fans flood into stadium parking lots hours before kickoff.

The Harambe flag works as a marker for Schrunk’s friends to find his tailgate location, and it’s meant to mark a memorial to his fallen hero.

“We thought about someone we loved, and decided on Harambe flag,” Schrunk said.

Shrunk and his friends came up with the design for the flag, then went to All Nation’s Flag Co. in Kansas City, Mo. to have it made for reasons of pride to fly on game day.

The world continues to mourn months after Harambe’s precautious euthanasia. The flag stands tall at Arrowhead as a reminder for all.

ACTIVE COACHES WITH WINS AT ALLEN FIELDHOUSE DWINDLE

Blog posted on EchlinSports.com

College basketball fans remember Steve Fisher for coaching the Fab Five at Michigan. But Kansas Jayhawk fans will remember Fisher with San Diego State as a scrape on Bill Self’s home record at Allen Fieldhouse – like a healed scar.

After Fisher, who announced his retirement this month, departed from Allen Fieldhouse Jan. 5, 2014, it was KU and the Jayhawk fans who were left in a Phog.

“If we had come in here and not won, we still have a good program. I’m proud of that fact, but to come in here and give Bill Self his ninth home loss, that’s pretty neat,” Fisher said.

After that loss, KU started a 51-game win streak in Lawrence, ending on Feb. 4 with an overtime loss, 92-89, to Iowa State. That ISU win, by the way, gave the Cyclones bragging rights as the only program to claim two wins over KU in the Self Era at Allen Fieldhouse, one under current coach Steve Prohm and the other under Wayne Morgan.

Self, to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, has an astonishing home record of 220-10.

Here’s another note: with Fisher’s retirement and the firing of Scott Sutton at Oral Roberts, the number of active head coaches with road wins at KU dwindles to four. Georgia coach Mark Fox, during his previous stint at Nevada, remains the only active non-Big 12 coach to win at KU.

Prohm, meanwhile, is the only current Big 12 coach to win in the Fieldhouse. Rick Barnes won while at Texas in 2011 before joining Fox in the SEC as the Tennessee coach two years ago. When Barnes notched that road win, 74-63, in ’11, he snapped KU’s 69-game home court winning streak. It was the longest active streak at the time and Self’s longest home court winning streak. In that stretch were three seasons of perfect home records, including the ’07-08 national championship season.

Former Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford just completed his first season at Saint Louis University. But while with the Cowboys, he joined the exclusive coaching club for wins at KU with an 85-80 triumph in ’13.

On the flip side, Baylor coach Scott Drew, despite the plethora of Bears talent that has taken the floor at Allen Fieldhouse, has never won at KU.

“We don’t lose at home, so that’s just something that’s harder to digest, but at the same time you’ve got to look at the bigger picture,” Kansas forward Landen Lucas said after the loss to Iowa State.

If any Big 12 coach has a vision of breaking KU’s streak of 13 straight conference championships, it starts with putting their names on that list of the few who have won at Allen Fieldhouse.

INTERNATIONALS INCREASE SEEN ACROSS NATION, CAMPUS

Appeared in the Northwest Missourian 12/5/13

The U.S. draws a steady increase of international students, and some of the national trends are mirrored at Northwest.

According to a survey conducted by the Institute of International Education, the average growth of international students at schools in the U.S. responding to the survey was 13 percent. China contributes the most international students with a 7 percent increase from last year.

China is one of the countries Northwest gets most of its international students from. According to Jeffrey Foot, director of International Affairs, the largest percentage of international students at Northwest come from China, India and Korea.

“It’s overwhelming in the beginning because it’s so different. It’s almost like the opposite,” said Julia Fosnaes, a student from Denmark.

The interaction of students growing up in the U.S. and those growing up in a different country is important because it gives both groups a diverse sense of culture.

“They would look at different things that are being studied within the classroom from these many different perspectives, so that you have a much fuller understanding of what a certain topic might be, whether it be advertising or whether it be education,” Foot said. “Whatever the topic is, you have various perspectives within that classroom.”

The perspectives of the 319 international students at Northwest are scattered throughout the University programs. A majority of the international students go to the Melvin D. and Valorie G. Booth College of Business and Professional Studies for degrees in business, accounting and finance. The international students also pursue degrees in fine arts, mass communication and pretty much any degree program Northwest offers.

“Thanks to the new friendships, I’ve came up with people who are also graphic designers, so I’ve came up with new contacts with people who could maybe help me find a job here if I want to stay,” said Jermaine Bosten, a student from the Netherlands.

The benefits from international students come with a price since the federal and state governments do not give any benefits to the University. It costs the University money to get international students to go to school at Northwest. The University tries to offer tuition to those students at the out-of-state student price as an incentive to attend Northwest.