2012 Chiefs Draft Recap

    The Chiefs ended the 2011 season with a record of 7-9 which was good for the 11th overall pick in the 2012 draft, After a strong free agnecy period, many of the Chiefs' needs were filled and could use their first pick as a luxury pick and improve at a certain position instead of drafting out of need like in years past.
    The draft stayed true to form and most players went where they were expected until the Chiefs picked at 11. The Chiefs picked Dontari Poe, the nose tackle out of the University of Memphis. The nose tackle position was a glaring weakness of the defense last year. Poe is a 6 ft 3 in, 346 pound lineman that ran a 4.98 40-yard dash, which is very rare for a guy that size. Fans were not too happy with the pick because they felt that the Chiefs could have traded down and still could have gotten him along with another pick.
     The Chiefs used the second and third round picks on the offensive line with Jeff Allen, a tackle from Illinois and Donald Stephenson, a tackle from Oklahoma. Both could play next year but are really viewed as successors to current offensive linemen Branden Albert and Ryan Lilja.
     The fourth round pick was Devon Wylie a wide receiver from Fresno State. He could be a slot receiver, he is fast.
     The fifth round pick was De'Quan Menzie a cornerback from Alabama. He was drafted as secondary depth for the upcoming season.
     Cyrus Gray was the sixth round pick. The running back out of Texas A&M was considered one of the best running back prospects in the draft.
      The Chiefs had two seventh round picks in Jerome Long, a defensive tackle from San Diego State and Junior Hemingway, a wide receiver from Michigan. These two will fight for spots on, most likely, special teams.

The Royals Season Begins in Disaster

    The Kansas City Royals 2012 season could not have had a worse start, than what they are experiencing right now. With all the injuries to their starting catcher, closer and, now, center fielder and a 12 game losing streak to boot. The Royals would probably like to hit the reset button and start the season anew by now.
     Through the first two series in Los Angeles and Oakland, the Royals were 3-3 heading into a ten-game homestand to kick off year in Kansas City. On Opening Day versus the Indians, Royals starter Luke Hochevar gave up seven runs in the first inning and then was hit by a line drive on the ankle, which knocked him out of the game. The Royals went on to get swept by the Indians in three games, the Tigers in three games and the Blue Jays in four games.
     After the loss in the first game in Cleveland, the Royals were on a 12-game losing streak. The Royals found a way to win against the Indians twice and the traveled to Minneapolis, totaling a three game win streak. Then met mother nature which halted their win streak. Kansas City was washed out on April 28 versus the Twins and May 1 versus the Tigers. The Royals were blown out by the Tigers on April 30 but found a way to beat the Tigers when reigning AL MVP Justin Verlander was on the mound for them.
     The Royals came home for a seven-game homestand against the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. The Royals took two of four versus New York. The Royals currently sit at 9-19 on the year and so far is viewed as a disappointment. Maybe they can turn it around and compete later in the year.

Kansas' Run Ends In New Orleans

     On March 31, the Kansas Jayhawks played the Ohio State Buckeyes in the National Semifinal game of the 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. The Jayhawks met the Buckeyes on December 10 in Lawrence defeated them 78-67. The Buckeyes did not have Jared Sullinger playing in that game which contributed to the double-digit loss. At halftime of this game Kansas was down 34-25. The Jayhawks rallied back in the second half outscoring the Buckeyes 39-28 and defeating the Buckeyes 64-62. Massachusetts Street in Lawrence was flooded with an estimated total of 20,000 students and crazed fans of Kansas. The Jayhawks would face the winner if the other National Semifinal between Kentucky and Louisville. Kentucky defeated Louisville 69-61; the National Championship was going to be a coaching rematch between Bill Self and John Calipari. Kansas and Kentucky would meet up on Monday April 2 to decide the National Championship.

     Two college basketball blue-bloods would play for the National Championship, with 11 combined championships and the two teams with the most all-time wins. In the first half, Kentucky pulled out to a 14 point lead at half and the Jayhawk faithful felt very uneasy about their chances in the second half. The halftime score was 41-27. Bill Self has pulled off miracles in big games before and the players were not going to out without a fight. The second half began with a small Kansas run to be answered by a couple of three point shots and Kansas would hang around a ten-point deficit most of the half. Kansas had it down to single-digits deficit a couple of times but turnovers and Deron Lamb three pointers would send the Jayhawks down double-digits for the remainder of the game. Kansas had the better second half but the first half deficit is what the Jayhawks downfall was. The final score was 67-59, ending with Kentucky cutting down the nets. Kansas's Thomas Robinson had 18 points and 17 rebounds in his final collegiate game. Kansas had a very good tournament run by defying the odds and the commentators beliefs to make it to a game that nobody thought they could get to. Even with the loss, fans will still count this year as a tremendous success.