Oklahoma's Blake Bell to switch from quarterback to tight end

According to Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops, former starting quarterback Blake Bell, also known as the “Belldozer”, will be switching positions. Bell will close out his career in Norman playing the tight end position during his senior season.

"Even though he could graduate and go somewhere, he wants to finish out and try tight end," coach Stoops said. "I think it's a great fit. Blake has the size, the athleticism, the speed to do that, and he's exhibited his toughness through the years."

As a junior, Bell led the Sooners with 1,648 passing yards and 12 touchdown passes (five interceptions). He completed 60.1 percent of this throws and averaged 7.07 yards per attempt. He started eight games. Bell had some solid moments but was very inconsistent and he struggled in losses to Texas (46.2 percent, 0 TDs, 2 INTs) and Baylor (42.9 percent, 1 TD, 2 INTs).

Oklahoma finished the season strong with four straight wins including upsets at Kansas State and Oklahoma State, as well as a big bowl win over Alabama in the Allstate Sugar Bowl. Bell attempted just 16 passes during their four-game winning streak, but in a relief role, he did lead the Sooners on the game-winning drive in Stillwater. Trailing 24-20, Bell connected with senior wide out Jalen Saunders from seven yards out for the game-winning score with 19 seconds remaining in the contest.

Despite his late-game heroics in the Bedlam rivalry, Stoops went back to Trevor Knight in the Sugar Bowl. The redshirt freshman responded with a career game, throwing for 348 yards and four touchdowns against the Crimson Tide, establishing himself as OU’s starting quarterback heading into the 2014 season.

It’s unclear if the Sooners will use Bell in short-yardage situations, which is where he flourished as a freshman and a sophomore. With a physical running style reminiscent of Tim Tebow, Bell scored 13 rushing touchdowns in 2011 and 11 more in 2012.

The move will give Bell a better chance to help the Sooners on the field in 2014, but it also leaves Oklahoma thin at the quarterback position behind Knight. Junior Kendall Thompson, the son of former OU star quarterback Charles Thompson, has decided to transfer.

That leaves redshirt freshman Cody Thomas and incoming true freshman Justice Hansen as Knight’s backups. Oklahoma has added Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year quarterback Bake Mayfield, who has transferred from Texas Tech, but he won’t be eligible to play until 2015.

World Peace open to trade from the Knicks

After not getting an answer of why he's in coach Mike Woodson's doghouse, Knicks forward Metta World Peace isn't ruling out the possibility of a trade out of New York.

World Peace has seen little time in the rotation since returning from a blood spinning procedure on Jan.24 for his ailing knee.

When asked about whether he wanted to get dealt at the Feb. 20 deadline, World Peace said: “That’s up to my agent. I don’t worry about it. I’m optimistic about my future. … I’m not going to complain.’’ 

Sources say that Woodson has been unhappy with World Peace after he made an apparent joke about his lack of playing time.

World Peace's agent, Marc Cornstein, has wondered about his player's status in the rotation since World Peace has been limited to garbage time despite the Knicks having injuries to Kenyon Martin and Andrea Bargnani for an undisclosed amount of time.

“I haven’t been given an answer,’’ Cornstein said. “Usually, I’ll get an answer, not always the one I want to hear. But I don’t have an answer for you on this.’’  

World Peace's name came up in trade talks for Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry but the trade never materialized.

I don't know who would take on World Peace right now. He could still be an asset for someone, but I don't see a contender wanting to give up much in return for the veteran defensive pest.

Paul George calls the Pacers the 'Seattle Seahawks of the NBA'

Indiana Pacers star Paul George believes that his team are the NBA equivalent of the Seattle Seahawks given their defensive prowess and physicality.

The Pacers are the best defensive unit in the NBA, allowing an average of just 90.7 points per game which has helped them to the top of the Eastern Conference with a 39-10 record.

Frank Vogel’s men are now 23-0 this season when they have been able to hold their opponents to below 90 points, and George believes that both individually and collectively they remind him of the newly crowned Super Bowl champions, the Seahawks.

“We approach it as a physical team and we do everything from a toughness standpoint,” George said, as reported by USA Today.

“Like Seattle….Seattle’s got individual guys that stand out defensively, as we do, and as a group we put it all together. We’re a great comparison to that team because we do it from an individual standpoint and as a group.”

Like their apparent NFL equivalents, the Pacers benefit from long, athletic defenders in the form of George, Roy Hibbert and Lance Stephenson while the likes of David West and George Hill add further elements of toughness to the team.

Indiana allow just 18.3 three points attempts a game while also allowing the fewest field goal attempts in the league inside five feet, a tribute to effort on the defensive end both as individual talents and as a team.

While the season ended in glory for the Seahawks after their dominant 43-8 win over the Denver Broncos in New Jersey, it remains to be seen whether or not George’s comparison will see them ended the year with success too.

Given their relentless push for the best record in the league this regular season, they appear to be on course to dethrone the Miami Heat and will leave nothing to chance in terms of having home advantage throughout the post-season.

If the Pacers can finish the job, the comparison will be valid.

Chiefs cut cornerback Dunta Robinson

Another day, another high priced veteran cornerback cut. The Atlanta Falcons released corner Asante Samuel on Wednesday and former teammate Dunta Robinson will join him in the hunt for a new team.

The Chiefs parted ways with veteran defensive back Dunta Robinson, who never quite lived up to expectations last season.

Instead, Robinson was slowed by a series of nagging injuries and appeared in only nine games, making 14 tackles and defending just two passes. He was also part of a defense that was torched by Indianapolis wide receivers in a loss that knocked Kansas City out of the playoffs.

The move was widely expected not only because the 31-year-old Robinson struggled most of the season, gradually losing playing time to undrafted free agent Marcus Cooper, but also because the cash-strapped Chiefs would save more than $3 million. Robinson’s three-year deal was worth $13.7 million.

The 31-year-old played in just nine games and started two last season for the Chiefs. He had 13 tackles, one fumble recovery and four passes defensed in 2013.

Robinson started his career with the Houston Texans. As a rookie in 2004, Robinson logged 88 tackles, a career-high six interceptions, three forced fumbles and 19 passes defensed. In 2010 he signed a big money deal with the Atlanta Falcons but was cut with three years left on his deal.

Because Robinson now is an unrestricted free agent, he is able to sign with another team before free agency opens on March 11.

Nuggets' McGee could be out for the season

JaVale McGee could miss the rest of the NBA season for the Denver Nuggets as he recovers from a stress fracture in his left leg.

Yahoo! Sports reports the 26-year-old center is now seeking further medical consultation for the injury that has sidelined him since early in the season but has yet to properly heal. The website adds a final decision on his status is expected within the next several days. In all, McGee has played in just five games this season.

If the Nuggets rule McGee out for the rest of the season, he would be the team's third player to be ruled out for the year based on injury. Guard Nate Robinson and forward Danilo Gallinari both recently had season-ending surgeries to repair torn ACL ligaments. This would be another blow to the Nuggets if McGee can't comeback this season.

McGee had averaged 9.1 points and nearly five rebounds a game for Denver in the 2012-13 season. The Nuggets have filled McGee's void in the lineup with J.J Hickson, Timofey Mozgov and Anthony Randolph.

The Nuggets can't afford anymore injuries and need to acquire depth at the trade deadline if they are to make a move for the playoffs.

Iowa State's Rhoads calls out schools trying to get prized recruit to flip

Iowa State doesn't get too many blue chip football recruits, so when they get a commitment from one they have to fight hard to keep it.

Hours after grabbing the national letter of intent from one of the most sought-after high school football players in the state, Iowa State football coach Paul Rhoads tossed jabs at a pair of teams that tried steering him away.

Rhoads talked up the future Cyclone and ripped schools trying to take him away.

“That’s Allen Lazard’s National Letter of Intent,” Rhoads said of his four-star crown jewel recruit. “Let me talk about Allen Lazard a little bit.”

“He’s not going to a school in northern Indiana,” Rhoads said of Lazard, a high school all-American. “Boy, they wasted a lot of time and money. He’s not going to another school in this state, who feverishly tried to call him about a half a dozen times in the last week.”

Rhoads isn't referring to Valparaiso and Northern Iowa. Those were shots directed at Notre Dame and Iowa for trying to steer Lazard away from Ames, Iowa.

“Much to the dismay of people in this room who wasted a lot of space and time challenging his words of commitment, he’s going right here to Iowa State University,” Rhoads added. 

Lazard is considered the crown jewel of Rhoads’ class and has been the subject of constant questions regarding his commitment to Iowa State. Lazard continued to visit Notre Dame after he first committed to Iowa State more than a year ago.

I can understand Rhoads' apparent frustration but he should know that recruit poaching goes on all the time. It's all a part of college football and if a school like Iowa State gets a player of Lazard's ilk, Rhoads can expect the big boys to keep coming after them.

Falcons release Asante Samuel

When the Atlanta Falcons acquired cornerback Asante Samuel from the Philadelphia Eagles in 2012, they were bringing in a defensive back who had made the Pro Bowl in four of his past five seasons. Pairing him with Brent Grimes and Dunta Robinson, the Falcons appeared to have crafted one of the league's premier cornerback trios. At the start of the 2013 season, however, Samuel was the only member of the trio who remained on the roster. As of Wednesday afternoon, the entire trio is out of Atlanta, as the Falcons have released Samuel.

With declining skills at the age of 33, Samuel was relegated to a bench role in 2013 and would have returned to the same role next season. Due a $3.5 million base salary with a $1.675 roster bonus this season, he was simply no longer worth the money. Having allowed a 113.7 passer rating on throws into his coverage this year, Samuel graded out as Pro Football Focus' 57th ranked cornerback among 110 qualifiers.

Dumping Samuel will allow the Falcons to give more valuable reps to their promising young cornerback duo of Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford, who were both rookies in 2013. Trufant was phenomenal, grading out as PFF's No. 7 cornerback in his rookie campaign. Alford struggled quite a bit throughout the season, but the Falcons still feel that he has tremendous upside.

As for Samuel, he'll hit the open market with his best days behind him, but he can still contribute as a role player for an NFL defense, particularly one that employs a zone-heavy scheme. The Chicago Bears could let Charles Tillman walk as a free agent this offseason, so they could be a potential landing spot for Samuel.

Samuel was at his best 2007-10, when he made four consecutive Pro Bowls to go with a first-team All-Pro selection. He has 51 career interceptions and has led the league twice in that category (2006 and 2009).