Latest news with #MichaelVick
Miami Herald
08-07-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Michael Vick Lands Former 4-Star, SEC commit
Norfolk State head coach Michael Vick has added another weapon to his arsenal. Signing former Auburn wide receiver and 4-star high school recruit JJ Evans. No, it's not that J.J. Evans. There's no "Dyn-o-mite!" catchphrase here-just dynamite upside. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound wideout from Montevallo, Alabama, arrives in Norfolk with one last shot to make the most of a college football career that once made SEC recruiters salivate. Under the guidance of an NFL icon-turned-HBCU head coach, this pairing could be just the spark that both Evans and Norfolk State are looking for. Coming out of Montevallo High School, Evans was that guy. As a junior, he racked up an eye-popping 74 catches for 1,706 yards and 18 touchdowns. Helping his squad to the Alabama Class 4A playoffs. His blend of size, body control, and natural hands drew comparisons to former UNC and Cleveland Browns wideout Bug Howard. 24/7Sports' John Garcia Jr. raved about Evans' physicality, catch radius, and red-zone potential. His defensive background only added to his toughness. He was the No. 5 prospect in Alabama and had SEC coaches lined up to sign him. Auburn won the sweepstakes-but Evans never got off the runway. After three seasons in the SEC with Auburn without recording a stat, he transferred to North Alabama, where he showed flashes: 17 receptions, 139 yards, and three scores in 2023, including a touchdown against No. 4 Florida State. Unfortunately, 2024 brought more struggles-seven appearances and zero stats. That's where Michael Vick steps in. The NFL legend, now calling the shots at Norfolk State, has made waves across the HBCU landscape. And in Evans, he sees a project worth investing in-a once-hyped prospect with Power Five DNA and something to prove. Vick knows better than anyone what it's like to live under the spotlight, stumble, and fight back. Evans' second chance comes in green and gold, with one final season to show the world why he was a 4-star star in the making. Norfolk State has been one of the hottest programs in HBCU football. Adding a hungry, physical wide receiver like Evans gives Vick's offense a potential matchup nightmare on the outside. If he can tap into the flashes from his prep and North Alabama days, Evans might finally live up to the hype. After all, who better to lead a comeback story than the man who wrote one himself? The post Michael Vick Lands Former 4-Star, SEC commit appeared first on HBCU Gameday. Copyright HBCU Gameday 2012-2025
Forbes
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
ESPN's Ogwumike Launches ‘Second Acts Live' Talks With Sports Stars
ESPN analyst and former WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike will lead a series of live on-stage conversations with former sports stars talking about the next phases of their lives, including former WNBA star Sue Bird, ex-ESPN scoopmeister Adrian Wojnarowski, and former NFL quarterback Michael Vick. The events, called Second Acts Live, are being launched in partnership with Folk Productions and sports-business site Front Office Sports, and planned for a variety of venues around the country. The initial lineup for Second acts Live Ogwumike called the live events 'an exciting new chapter for me, where I get to learn from and celebrate others who are redefining themselves in powerful ways.' The focus in sports personalities in their next acts reflects the old adage that athletes die two deaths, the first when their sports career ends, Ogwumike acknowledged in an interview. Ogwumike is her own second act, in media, with her on-air ESPN analyst work after a decade-long WNBA career interrupted by her decision not to play during 2020's pandemic bubble year. Older sister Nneka Ogwumike remains in the league, playing for the Seattle Storm and just named an All-Star Game starter. Ogwumike promised the on-stage conversations would be wide-ranging and not, to use a sports metaphor, filled with softball questions. And she said the conversations will be interactive, meaning she intends to interact and even invite audience questions as part of the events. 'The way I would describe these (interview subjects) is they are very much what you see is what you get,' Ogwumike said. 'When you think about picking the talent, who are the people actually going through a second act right now,' said Folk Productions co-founder Tré Scott. 'The questions don't have to be gotchas. She's embarking on the literal journey as we speak. It becomes something more organic and spiritual.' Scott said the cadence of events will be about one a month, each to be located on home turf of the personality to be interviewed. Thus WNBA Hall of Famer Bird's September event will be in Seattle, where she played her entire pro career, and will talk about her efforts to grow women's sports. Wojnarowski's conversation will be in Philadelphia, where he'll talk about his decision last fall to leave behind decades of delivering endless scoops for ESPN to become general manager of the men's basketball team at his alma mater, St. Bonaventure University in western New York. Vick, a four-time All-Pro NFL quarterback before falling from grace and serving nearly two years in federal prison on dog-fighting charges, rebuilt his NFL career after his 2009 release, then became an on-air NFL analyst for Fox. Last December, he was named head football coach at HBCU Norfolk State University. His Second Acts Live event will be in December in Atlanta, where he recorded his biggest NFL success. 'First and foremost, our primary focus is we want the audience to have an amazing experience,' Scott said. 'How we bring it to the audience will be truly about live entertainment. People want to hear those untold stories. It's really about how to drive people to the live, in-person experience.' The partnership will leverage Front Office Sports' mammoth online and newsletter presence to both build awareness and audience engagement before each event, and follow up with online material culled from each live conversation, Scott said. Live events as a category have quickly recovered from the devastations of the pandemic lockdown, with music in particular a hot commodity, as evidenced by the massively lucrative recent tours of Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. And podcasts of a bewildering variety have blossomed online, featuring an immense variety of mostly recorded conversations with notables in many areas, including sports. Even old talk-show hosts such as David Letterman and Jon Stewart have in recent years recast themselves doing in-depth, one-to-one conversations, partly in front of live audiences, with a variety of notables. More specialized live events, such as Live Talks Los Angeles, have put on hundreds of events in specific markets, in Live Talks' case pairing authors of prominent new books with interesting interlocutors from many fields. Second Acts will launch focused in sports and media, where Ogwumike has her strongest roots, connections, and behind-the-scenes stories, she said. But her long-term ambition is to expand the potential conversational partners into other areas. Scott said event venues will generally range in size from 1,200 to 2,000 seats, such as the Met Philadelphia, which has upcoming shows featuring Cat Stevens, Jon Batiste and John Mulaney, the comedian who's recently presided over a series of live late-night talk shows on Netflix. Theaters of that size are big enough to create the energy and scale to connote an 'event,' while still allowing the resulting conversation to remain intimate in feel, Scott said. Holding live events may limit the initiative's initial scale, Scott acknowledged, but said 'scale can exist outside the walls of the theater, and that is the magic. That's how we end up with a platform.'
Miami Herald
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Michael Vick's all-white party brings out star power
Michael Vick is still a few months away from leading his HBCU squad onto the field for its first game, but he's already generating buzz. The Norfolk State head coach celebrated his 45th birthday earlier this month with a star-studded event. Celebrity Guests and Hometown Energy Basketball Hall of Famer Allen Iverson and hip-hop legend Jadakiss were among the many guests who stepped out in all-white to celebrate with Vick. The party took place in Vick's hometown of Newport News, Virginia, at the Kiln Creek Golf Course and Resort. Vick grew up in the Tidewater Region of Virginia and starred at Warwick High School before becoming a standout quarterback at Virginia Tech. He was drafted No. 1 overall by the Atlanta Falcons in 2001 and remained a familiar face in the area during his NFL career. Return to Roots at Norfolk State Now back in the region as head coach at nearby HBCU Norfolk State University, Vick has reconnected with his roots. It's the same community Allen Iverson calls home. Iverson has supported Vick's coaching journey from the beginning-attending both his introductory press conference and Norfolk State's spring game. He also made sure to be there for Vick's birthday celebration. HBCU Coaches in Attendance Several HBCU coaches joined the festivities. Norfolk State special teams coordinator and Winston-Salem State legend Tory Woodbury attended the party. So did former North Carolina Central standout and current Elizabeth City State head football coach Adrian Jones. Jadakiss Celebrates and PerformsJadakiss, whose daughter recently graduated from HBCU Morgan State University, performed a few of his hits and shared birthday wishes with Vick: "Happy 45th to my brother, man, Mike Vick. Another lap around the sun. Hopefully we gonna have a great season here at Norfolk State. I love you forever, your brother 'Kiss man." Season Opener Approaches Norfolk State is scheduled to kick off its season at home against Towson on August 28 as Michael Vick will make his head coaching debut. The post Michael Vick's all-white party brings out star power appeared first on HBCU Gameday. Copyright HBCU Gameday 2012-2025
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lamar Jackson Earns Top 25 Spot in All-Time QB Ranking
Lamar Jackson Earns Top 25 Spot in All-Time QB Ranking originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Baltimore Ravens have one of the best quarterbacks of this generation in Lamar Jackson. But it is about time for him to be listed among some of the better field generals to ever play the game. Advertisement In a recent article by SB Nation, they put together a survey with 13 NFL analysts asking them who the 30 best quarterbacks of all time are. And at No. 23, they have the star QB of the reigning AFC North champions. "For years, the NFL was waiting for a player like Lamar Jackson to come along - a true dual-threat quarterback that could dominate both on the ground and through the air," Sam Monson of The 33rd Team wrote. "Players like Michael Vick hinted at what was possible, and Cam Newton was able to put together one elite MVP season, but Lamar Jackson is the first player to sustain it... Special athletes have played the quarterback position before, but none have been as effective and efficient at passing the football as Jackson." Before Jackson entered the league, Michael Vick was known as the king of scrambling quarterbacks, as he held just about every record. But all of that has since changed. Advertisement Jackson recently passed Vick in rushing yards, and he did that while playing around 60 fewer games. The Ravens QB also holds the most rushing yards in a season by a QB with 1,206, which he did in his first MVP season in 2019. But he has proven time and time again that he is also an excellent passer, as he had 4,172 yards and 41 touchdowns through the air this past season. And he did all of that while throwing just four interceptions. The one thing holding Jackson back a bit at the moment is the fact that he has not won a Super Bowl. But he and the rest of the Ravens will be looking to change that in 2025. Related: Ravens Predicted to Dominate NFL in Latest Record Predictions Related: Ravens Training Camp Schedule Announced Starring 'New' Lamar Jackson This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared.
Time of India
23-06-2025
- Time of India
That heartbreaking Michael Vick interview where he broke down and left fans stunned
When Michael Vick sat down for his first big interview after getting out of prison, nobody expected him to be that raw. The legendary quarterback, once one of the highest-paid athletes in the NFL, opened up about the darkest chapter of his life, and his words still echo today. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In a now-iconic 60 Minutes sit-down, Vick didn't make excuses. He didn't dodge blame. He looked straight into the camera and confessed. Michael Vick's emotional confession after prison shook the NFL world The year was 2009. Vick had just served 18 months in federal prison for his role in a brutal dogfighting ring. He lost everything, his freedom, his $130 million Falcons contract, and the trust of millions. But when he spoke to CBS's 60 Minutes , it wasn't about football. It was about guilt. 'I blame me,' he said. 'Football don't even matter.' He admitted he cried in his cell almost every night, overwhelmed by the reality of what he had done and what he allowed to happen under his watch. 'I cried so many nights. I was disgusted with myself… because I could've shut the whole operation down.I could've walked away from it. I could've put a stop to it. I didn't.' You could feel the weight in every word. There was no ego, no filters, just a man trying to come to terms with the pain he caused. His fall from grace and what made that moment so powerful Before his arrest, Vick was unstoppable. He had redefined what it meant to be a dual-threat quarterback. Kids wore his jersey. He was a highlight reel on legs. But behind the scenes, a horrifying operation was unfolding, one that eventually landed him in prison. When he came out, fans expected the typical PR spin. What they got was complete vulnerability. Vick spoke about losing everything and how he deserved to. He didn't want sympathy. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now He wanted accountability. He even started working with the Humane Society, meeting with former critics and trying to use his story to stop others from following the same path. The fanbase was divided but many appreciated his honesty The reaction? Complicated. That 60 Minutes moment became a cultural checkpoint, people still share the clip today whenever conversations around redemption, guilt, or growth come up in sports. Michael Vick's football comeback after prison was one story. But his emotional comeback, his willingness to own up to everything, in full view of the public is what still resonates. In an industry full of polished statements and 'no comments,' Vick gave us something different. Something real. Also read -
