I had been using NordVPN and MLB TV to watch Braves games prior to the all-star break. After the all-star break, it seems that MLB TV has blocked all NordVPN servers. Has anyone figured out a way around it? Or an alternative?

fueling the Cocks. (SIAP)

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The stench is unbelievable. You would think every politician across the country would be talking up the dangers of China.

Seems like most of them (ALL PARTIES) are waiting on when they can get hooked up to make the big money the Bidens are squeezing out the Chinese Teat.

Anyone else feel this way?

What is the best cell service on Gameday? I have Verizon and can’t hardly send a text message. I’m thinking of getting a 5G hotspot to stream at the tailgate this season and want to know what the best service is and if it is possible to get enough service to stream live sports.

Haven’t seen anything posted but the golf team posted this on Twitter.
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From our Duke site at Rivals.com ...

3 bold predictions, glass-half-full edition​

By: Connor O'Neill - DevilsIllustrated.com

Do you want the good news or the bad news first?

Or in this case: The optimist side of bold projections or the pessimistic one?

Well, you’re getting the former.

It’s the time of year when optimism reigns supreme in college football and that’s what we’re leaning into here. As the headline says, these three predictions skew toward best-case-scenario territory.

There will be a yin to this yang, but that’s coming later.

Here are three bold predictions — on the positive side — for Duke’s football season:

1. Duke goes 4-1 in September​

The context: Duke has five games in the last 27 days of September, starting with a Monday night opener against Clemson at Wallace Wade Stadium.

The Blue Devils’ four non-conference games are next; home games against FCS-level Lafayette and turmoil-stricken Northwestern, a trip to Connecticut, followed by a home game against Notre Dame on Sept. 30.

Why it’s bold: Because you don’t just walk into Storrs, Conn., and beat the defending national champs.

Oh, right, wrong sport.

Duke’s last win over a top-10 team — where Clemson is likely to be when the rankings come out in several weeks — was in 1989. Notre Dame might be in that top 10 when they visit Durham.

I think Duke gets a win over one of them.

Why so confident: All of the talk about how much more difficult Duke’s schedule is compared to last year has to be accompanied with discussion of how many of those players are back this season.

This is a team that lost little production from a nine-win team, and it’s one that should help Duke establish itself as one of the better teams in the ACC this season.

I think that happens with an early win against a marquee opponent.

2. Riley Leonard has better stats than last year​

The context: As a first-year starter, Leonard completed 63.8% of his passes for 2,967 yards and 20 touchdowns, only throwing six interceptions. He was Duke’s leading rusher, with 699 yards and 13 scores (5.6 yards per carry).

Why it’s bold: Well … it is and it isn’t.

It’s natural to expect some growth in a player’s second season as a starter. Defensive coordinators like to throw the kitchen sink at new quarterbacks and Leonard handled whatever was thrown at him last year.
Plus, he’ll benefit from a wealth of familiarity, as Duke returns every contributor at the skill positions.

He set the bar high for himself, though.

His 33 total touchdowns are the most ever for a Duke quarterback; his 3,666 total yards last season was the second-most (behind Anthony Dilweg’s 3,713 in 1988). Leonard’s 20:6 ratio on touchdown passes against interceptions was the most-efficient in Duke history.

Why so confident: It’s for a few reasons but the main one is simply believing that the first part of the section above matters more than the second part.
Leonard’s rapport with Jalon Calhoun, Jordan Moore, Eli Pancol and Sahmir Hagans (among others) was one of the most impressive things about his season a year ago. Barring something crazy, those are bonds that have only strengthened since we last saw the Blue Devils in action.

The level of continuity for Duke’s skill positions — and the coaches of those positions — should pay dividends in the form of a more-explosive offense.

3. Duke finishes top five in ACC​

The context: We’re done with the Atlantic and Coastal divisions in the ACC, as the league is moving to a 14-team amorphous blob of a structure.

The two powerhouses of the Atlantic — formerly Florida State and currently Clemson — are going to be picked atop the ACC. Champions of preseason hype like UNC, Miami and N.C. State are likely to be picked next (order TBD), and the next tier will include some smattering of Duke, Wake Forest and Pittsburgh.

Why it’s bold: Annnd now we’re back to talking about schedule difficulty.

We’ve had a story already that helps lay out how much harder this season’s schedule is compared to last year’s.

Duke is bound to have some bumps in the road — phrasing that becomes literal. The stretch of four road games in five weeks spanning October and November — against teams that were a combined 43-23 last season — looks daunting.

There are going to be games this season in which Duke’s depth is stretched to a breaking point.

Why so confident: First of all, the preseason media poll is never accurate. So it’d benefit Duke — picked to finish last in the Coastal ahead of last season and came within a called-back touchdown against UNC of winning the division — to be picked near the bottom of the ACC.

But moving beyond meaningless preseason polls, confidence in the Blue Devils competing at the top of the league stems from how complete the roster is.

It’s not just an offense returning so many key contributors; it’s a good offense returning so many key parts. It’d be one thing to return a bunch of the same players who struggled through growing pains in the first year with a new staff; that’s not the case here. Duke was fifth in the ACC in scoring and fourth in total offense last season.

Defensively, you’re counting on more new faces than the offense will be, but still have the core of contributors returning. All three levels — DeWayne Carter, Cam Dillon and Brandon Johnson
— have a player who’s capable of playing at an All-ACC level.

NCSU is buried in recruiting rankings. They are currently ahead of only UVa in ACC. Not a strong year for them. Pack is in the 50’s in the rankings….

Interest and contributions will fall way off since CFB over.

But we can use this thread for info running thru end of MM

Got stung for the 2nd week in a row while cutting grass. Little bastards messed up and let me find their spot. What’s the best way to get rid of them?

is now ranked No. 9 nationally by Rivals.com.

Clemson is at No. 5 nationally in star rating average.

The only recruiting classes in the country with a 3.70 star rating average or greater ...

3.94: Ohio State
3.88: UGA
3.83: Tennessee
3.82: Auburn
3.76: Clemson
3.73: Alabama
3.72: Texas A&M

National recruiting class rankings by Rivals.com

Whats causing this? I have my opinion of course but interesting to see what others think.

• People aged under the age of 40 being urged to go and get their hearts checked
• May potentially be at risk of having Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS)
• SADS is an 'umbrella term to describe unexpected deaths in young people'
• A 31-year-old woman who died in her sleep last year may have had SADs

By TOM HEATON FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

PUBLISHED: 02:05 EDT, 8 June 2022 | UPDATED: 02:32 EDT, 8 June 2022

People aged under 40 are being urged to have their hearts checked because they may potentially be at risk of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome.
The syndrome, known as SADS, has been fatal for all kinds of people regardless of whether they maintain a fit and healthy lifestyle.
SADS is an 'umbrella term to describe unexpected deaths in young people', said The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, most commonly occurring in people under 40 years of age.

People aged under 40 are being urged to have their hearts checked, because they may potentially be at risk of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS) (pictured, woman experiencing chest pain while running)
The term is used when a post-mortem cannot find an obvious cause of death.
The US-based SADS Foundation has said that over half of the 4,000 annual SADS deaths of children, teens or young adults have one of the top two warning signs present.
Those signs include a family history of a SADS diagnosis or sudden unexplained death of a family member, and fainting or seizure during exercise, or when excited or startled, reported news.com.au.
Last year a 31-year-old woman, Catherine Keane, died in her sleep while living with two friends in Dublin.

Catherine Keane (pictured right with her mother Margherita), 31, was found to have died in her sleep while living with two friends in Dublin last year
Her mother Margherita Cummins told the Irish Mirror, 'They were all working from home so no one really paid attention when Catherine didn't come down for breakfast.'
'They sent her a text at 11.20am and when she didn't reply, they checked her room and found she had passed.
'Her friend heard a noise in her room at 3.56am and believes now that is when she died.'
Ms Cummins stated that her daughter 'went to the gym and walked 10,000 steps every day'.
'I take some comfort in that she went in her sleep and knew no pain and I'm grateful for that. I always worried about the kids driving in the car but never saw this coming. I never thought I'd ever lose a child in my life,'

Spokesperson for Melbourne's Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute said: 'there are approximately 750 cases per year of people aged under 50 in Victoria suddenly having their heart stop (cardiac arrest)' (pictured, woman suffering from chest pain)
Melbourne's Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute is developing the country's first SADS registry.
'There are approximately 750 cases per year of people aged under 50 in Victoria suddenly having their heart stop (cardiac arrest),' a spokesperson said.
'Of these, approximately 100 young people per year will have no cause found even after extensive investigations such as a full autopsy (SADS phenomenon).'
Cardiologist and researcher Dr Elizabeth Paratz said: 'Baker's registry was the first in the country and one of only a few in the world that combined ambulance, hospital and forensics information.'
'(It allows you to see) people have had the cardiac arrest and no cause was found on the back end,' Dr Paratz said.
She believes the potential lack of awareness may be due to the fact 'a lot of it takes place outside of traditional medical settings'.

Cardiologist and researcher Dr Elizabeth Paratz (pictured) said from a public health perspective, combating SADS was 'not as easy as everyone in Australia getting genetically screened' as scientists were still not 100 per cent clear on 'what genes cause this'
'The majority of these SADS events, 90 per cent, occur outside the hospital – the person doesn't make it – so it's actually ambulance staff and forensics caring for the bulk of these patients,' Dr Paratz said.
'I think even doctors underestimate it. We only see the 10 per cent who survive and make it to hospital. We only see the tip of the iceberg ourselves.'
For family and friends of victims, SADS is a 'very hard entity to grasp' because it's a 'diagnosis of nothing', Dr Paratz added.


Dr Paratz said that from a public health perspective, combating SADS was 'not as easy as everyone in Australia getting genetically screened' as scientists were still not 100 per cent clear on 'what genes cause this'.
'The best advice would be, if you yourself have had a first-degree relative – a parent, sibling, child – who's had an unexplained death, it's extremely recommended you see a cardiologist,' she said.
Read more:

On this day in 1977, the Hot Chocolate single “So You Win Again” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #83 (July 16)

The song from the UK soul/disco combo eventually peaked at #31 in on the US Billboard chart, but turned out to be Hot Chocolate’s only UK #1, spending three weeks at the top.

The track from the “Every 1's a Winner” LP also peaked at #2 in Ireland, #5 in the Netherlands, #6 in Austria, Belgium, Germany and Norway, #8 in New Zealand, #12 in Australia, and #13 in Sweden.

Click on the link below to watch:

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On this day in 1966, the Lovin’ Spoonful single “Summer in the City” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #53 (July 16)

In need of new material for their next LP, John Sebastian, the band's principal songwriter, recalled a song composed and informally taped by his teenage brother, Mark, titled "It's a Different World".

Written when Mark was 14, it featured a bossa nova-like sound and rudimentary lyrics, written in the style of soul singer Sam Cooke.

John Sebastian recalled:

“[My brother] Mark really was the beginning of the song. Hot town, summer in the city ... but at night it's a different world. ‘Hey, hold on, what's that?’ I said.”

“Summer in the City” went on to become a classic Summer song.
It was released in the Summer of ‘66, and in 2014, Billboard ranked the song #29 in a list of the top 30 summer songs ever recorded.

The song from the LP “Hums of The Lovin’ Spoonful” went all the way to the top, and stayed at #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks.

It’s ranked #401 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

The catchy song also made #1 in Canada, #2 in the Netherlands, #3 in New Zealand and Norway, #7 in Australia and #8 in the UK.

It was also the first ever song to have traffic noise and sound effects included on the track.

Click on the link below to watch:

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Happy Birthday today to Stewart Copeland, who was born in Alexandria, Virginia, on this day in 1952 (July 16)

Copeland is one of my very favourite drummers.

His reggae-infused rock grooves were refreshing; his fills, syncopation and hi-hat work always interesting, and he was ALWAYS lock-down tight.

He was also well used to traveling the world, long before he became a famous touring rock star…

Copeland’s mother was a Scottish archaeologist, and his father worked for the CIA, so the family moved to Cairo a few months after his birth.

When Stewart was five years old, they moved to Beirut, and it was here he started taking drum lessons at age 12 and was playing drums for school dances within a year.

He later moved to England, attending the American School in London and Millfield boarding school in Somerset from 1967 to 1969. He went to college in California, enrolling at Alliant International University and the University of California, Berkeley.

He then returned to England and started working as road manager for the progressive rock band Curved Air's 1974 reunion tour, and then as drummer for the band during 1975 and 1976.

Then after Curved Air split, Copeland founded the Police in early 1977 with lead singer-bass guitarist Sting and guitarist Henry Padovani (who was soon replaced by Andy Summers), with Copeland the youngest member of the band.

The Police's early track list (before their album debut) was largely Copeland compositions, including the band's first single "Fall Out".

Around this time Copeland also recorded under the pseudonym Klark Kent, releasing several UK singles in 1978 and an album in 1980, playing all the instruments and singing the lead vocals himself.

Kent's "Don't Care", which peaked at #48 in the UK in August 1978, actually predates the first chart single by the Police by several months ("Can't Stand Losing You", issued in October 1978)

The Police of course, went on to sell over 75 million records, making them one of the best-selling bands of all time, winning six Grammy Awards, two Brit Awards, and an MTV Video Music Award.

An impressive total of four of their five studio albums appeared on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", and they were included among both Rolling Stone's and VH1's lists of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".

After the Police, Copeland has collaborated with other prominent musicians like Peter Gabriel, Mike Rutherford, Tom Waits, Stanley Clarke and Jeff Lynne.
He has also produced many film and video game soundtracks and written various pieces of music for ballet, opera, and orchestra.

His work includes films such as Wall Street, Men At Work, Rumble Fish, She’s Having a Baby, Anna Karenina, Taking Care of Business, and Highlander II: The Quickening; television series including The Equalizer, The Young Ones, and Desperate Housewives; and the musical score for the hit PlayStation game Spyro the Dragon.

Stewart Copeland was ranked the 10th best drummer of all time by Rolling Stone in 2016.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Police in 2003, the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2005, and the Classic Drummer Hall of Fame in 2013.

Click on the link below to marvel at his work on “Walking on the Moon”:

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Legendary keyboard player Jon Lord passed away on this day in 2012 (July 16)

Best known as keyboard player for rock icons Deep Purple, Lord is renowned for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, which inspired generations of keyboard players.

Lord also spent time in the bands Whitesnake, Paice Ashton Lord, The Artwoods, The Flower Pot Men and Santa Barbara Machine Head.

In 1968, Lord co-founded Deep Purple, and was regarded as the leader until 1970.
Together with the other members, he collaborated on most of his band's most popular songs.

Originally formed as a psychedelic rock and progressive rock band, they morphed into hard rock and heavy metal gurus, becoming one of the world’s most popular rock bands, selling over 100 million albums worldwide.

Lord's distinctive organ playing during Deep Purple's hard rock period was essential to the band's signature heavy sound and contributed to the early development of heavy metal.

He and drummer Ian Paice were the only continuous presence in the band between 1968 and 1976, and also from when it was re-established, in 1984, until Lord's retirement in 2002.

Lord was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 8 April 2016 as a member of Deep Purple.

Jon Lord died on 16 July 2012 at the London Clinic after suffering from a pulmonary embolism, following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

He was one of the best…

Click on the link below to watch Lord’s work on “Highway Star”:

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Singer, songwriter and guitarist Harry Chapin passed away on this day in 1981 (July 16)

Chapin recorded a total of 11 albums from 1972 until his death in 1981, and 14 singles he released became hits on at least one national music chart, including his 1972 hit “Taxi”, and the 1974 classic “Cats in the Cradle”.

In 2001, Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle" was ranked # 186 of 365 on the Recording Industry Association of America list of Songs of the Century.

On the afternoon of July 16, 1981, Chapin was en route on the Long Island Expressway to perform at a free benefit concert at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, New York that evening.

At 12:27 PM, Chapin was fatally injured in a fiery traffic collision with a semi-trailer truck outside Jericho, New York.
Passersby managed to help the unconscious Chapin out of his engulfed 1975 Volkswagen Rabbit and he was immediately taken by helicopter to the nearby Nassau County Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 1:05 PM due to internal bleeding.

On December 7, 1987, on what would have been his 45th birthday, Chapin was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his campaigning on social issues, particularly his highlighting of hunger around the world and in the United States.
He was one of the most politically and socially active performers of the 1970s.

In 2011 he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Click the link below to watch Chapin perform “Cats in the Cradle”, with a touching intro from his wife and son:

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Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Bonnie Tyler single “Total Eclipse of the Heart” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #75 (July 16)

The Jim Steinman-penned song eventually spent a total of four weeks at the top of the US charts, keeping another Steinman-penned song "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" by Air Supply from reaching the top spot (a song Tyler would later cover in 1995), becoming Billboard's #6 song of the year for 1983.

The epic song became Tyler's biggest career hit, also topping the singles charts in the UK, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and Norway.

The song was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

That’s the E Street Band’s Roy Bittan doing a typically excellent job on piano in the recording…

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On this day in 1979, the Blondie single “Hanging On The Telephone” debuted on the Australian charts at #100 (July 16)

The song was written by Jack Lee, and originally released in 1976 by his short-lived US West Coast power pop band The Nerves.

The song appeared as the lead-off track on the Nerves's 1976 EP; however the release was a commercial failure and ended up being the group's only release.

Blondie discovered the song that was eventually released on their breakthrough third album “Parallel Lines” via a cassette compilation tape.

Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry explained:

“We were playing it in the back of a taxicab in Tokyo, and the taxicab driver started tapping his hand on the steering wheel. When we came back to the US, we found that the Nerves weren't together anymore and we said, 'Gee, we should record this.'”

Lee had been financially struggling at the time; he recalled the moment the band called him to ask permission to cover the song:

“I remember the day vividly. It was a Friday.
They were going to cut off our electricity at six o'clock, the phone too."

Blondie's version of the song begins with a sound effect of a telephone ringing, which was the idea of producer Mike Chapman; he recalled:

"The Blondies all thought that was stupid and too gimmicky, but I said, 'C'mon, guys! Gimmicky? This is Blondie. Let's give it a try!'"

The song became a fan favourite, peaking at #5 in the UK, #16 in Ireland, #19 in Belgium, #20 in the Netherlands, #39 in Australia, and #43 in New Zealand.

The single failed to chart in the US…

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This week in 1980, Ramones appeared on Countdown as part of their Australasian Tour (July 13)

After kicking off the tour in Japan, then stopping off for a show in Auckland, Ramones started the Australian leg with gigs in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.

Following their Countdown performance, Ramones continued with shows in Wollongong, Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane and the Gold Coast, before wrapping up in New Zealand.

Were you at any of these shows?

Click on the link below to watch Ramones on Countdown performing “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School”:

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On this day in 1979, the John Cougar single “Miami” debuted on the Australian charts at #91 (July 16)

The song was released on his third studio album “John Cougar” which was the first album which credited him under that name, after being called “Johnny Cougar” on the first two.

The album was released in 1979, following the success in Australia of the single "I Need a Lover" from his previous album “A Biography”, which did not receive a US release.

"Miami" was only released as a single in Australia, and became his second Top 40 hit there, peaking at #31.

In the US, “Small Paradise" was released as a single in place of "Miami", but it was not very successful, peaking at #87 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1980.

During concerts in 1979 and 1980, guitarist Mike Wanchic would trade lead vocals with Mellencamp on "Miami".

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Clemson Offense:
30 PPG
275 passing ypg
175 rushing ypg

Klubnik:
250 passing ypg
30 passing TDs

Shipley:
1000 rush yds
15 rush TDs
400 receiving yds

Mafah:
500 rush yds
7 rush TDs

Beaux:
800 Rec yds
8 TDs

Tonio:
800 Rec yds
8 TDs

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From Rivals.com national recruiting director Adam Gorney this morning:

What do ya think? Tigers, Longhorns, Other?

How ya feelin'?

Lancaster (Texas) Rivals100 four-star corner Cori Gipson has announced his commitment to Clemson.

Who plays Corner who plays Safety?

Tavoy Feagin
Noah Dixon
Ricardo Jones
Ashton Hampton
Cori GiPson

At least according to this Vanderbilt professor.
Good listen debunking myths.

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Anyone seen this movie yet? It's gotten great reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, Google, and IMDB.

Pretty cool that a movie studio known for Christian values (Angel Studios) can go up against some of Hollywood's biggest studios with a different business model - through crowd funding and by sending some rather different Hollywood messages than we're used to (sex, drugs, parties, violence).

Have not seen it (yet). Curious to get people's thoughts

Was thinking of possibly taking it in this week if the TI movie reviewers approved of it. I heard it's not doing real well in drawing the opening revenue, but maybe it's early.

TIA