Last Season Sparks Jose Of Rams

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After going 1-12 and 0-8 in the WAC in his first season with the Spartans in 2010, San Jose State improved drastically in 2011, going 5-7 and 3-4 in conference play.

 

Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For a second straight offseason, football recruiting at the University of Rhode Island may be the toughest job in CAA Football, yet the easiest in the Northeast Conference. A year ago, URI head coach Joe Trainer and his staff faced having to assemble their first recruiting class since the university announced two summers ago it would leave the CAA to join the smaller NEC for the 2013 season.

 

The coaches basically had to attract players who would enter college at a higher level of competition than they would leave it. That could have alienated the Rams from some prospects whose aspirations rest with playing on the highest level of the FCS.

 

URI expects to bring in 13 or 14 recruits in a signing class that can be announced Wednesday on National Letter of Intent Day.

 

"I think time with tell. A lot of times my analogy is always recruiting's like marriage - you don't know what you get until you're living it. A lot of those kids are going to be really good players."

 

Trainer kept his recruiting class to 12 last year. It produced a gem in gritty junior college transfer Doug Johnson, a linebacker who was second on the team with 79 tackles and first with six sacks and two interceptions. He was named to the All-CAA third team.

 

URI coaches are targeting offensive and defensive linemen as well as defensive backs as the focus of this year's recruiting class because they are areas of concern due to graduation.

 

With fewer scholarships, but a chance to have more impact players in the NEC than the CAA, the Rams can be selective in recruiting. As Keith Croft, the veteran head coach of Rhode Island's top-ranked 2011 high school team, Division I state champion Bishop Hendricksen in Warwick, points out, the Rams don't necessarily have to find talent that possibly slipped through the FBS cracks. They can focus on players ready to be performers on the FCS level.

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El Duque expected to throw Tuesday

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.

Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.

El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.

MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds. 

Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.

New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.

Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''

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