Sports shorts: Nashville (Ill.) football recruit picks Mizzou – STLtoday.com
On the offensive side of the ball, Royce Newman lines up at tight end, but the Missouri coaching staff sees something else in the 6-foot-7, 265-pound prospect from Nashville, Ill.
“They want me to play offensive tackle,” Newman said Sunday, a day after giving Mizzou an oral commitment for the 2016 recruiting class. “I think it’ll be an easy transition. We run a double wing offense (at Nashville High), so half the time I’m pretty much just blocking at tight end. So, I’m used to blocking on every play.”
Newman said Missouri’s coaches are confident his frame will allow him to reach 300 to 310 pounds.
Newman, also a defensive end, took part in last week’s Mizzou camp in Columbia, Mo. Mizzou is one of just two Football Bowl Subdivision programs that have offered Newman a scholarship. North Carolina State is the other.
He also holds offers from Southern Illinois, Illinois State and Eastern Illinois. Newman is unranked by the national recruiting services.
Missouri’s coaches “don’t care how many stars or how much exposure you have,” Newman said. “They just care if you can fit in their program.”
Newman was a second-team all-state basketball player last season. He’s the 11th player to commit to Mizzou’s 2016 class and the third offensive lineman. Oral pledges are non-binding. High school recruits can sign national letters of intent beginning the first Wednesday in February of their senior year. (Dave Matter)
Froome wins Criterium du Dauphine • British rider Chris Froome launched one of his blistering mountain attacks to win the Criterium du Dauphine race for the second time, taking the eighth stage to take the yellow jersey from American rider Tejay van Garderen in Modane Valfrejus, France.
Froome won the race in 2013 on his way to the Tour de France title, and with the showcase race starting in less than three weeks, this victory sends a strong message out to his rivals.
Van Garderen led Froome by 18 seconds overnight but could not keep up when Froome attacked with about 1.25 miles left on the final climb.
Froome moved into contention by winning Saturday’s seventh stage — the toughest of the race with five category-1 climbs — and again proved too strong. (AP)
Durasek captures Tour de Suisse second stage • Kristijan Durasek of Croatia continued his career-best season by winning the Tour de Suisse stage two in Risch-Rotkreuz, Switzerland, and Tom Dumoulin of the Netherlands retained the overall lead.
The 27-year-old Durasek broke clear in the final half mile of the 100.1-mile stage to finish four seconds ahead of a group that included Dumoulin. (AP)
Nadal takes home Mercedes Cup • Rafael Nadal defeated Viktor Troicki 7-6 (3), 6-3 to win the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany for the third time and claim his first title on grass since Wimbledon in 2010.
The top-seeded Spaniard, who had no aces in his semifinal win over Gael Monfils, ended the first-set tiebreaker with an ace — his ninth. Nadal saved the only break point he faced.
Playing with evident confidence against the eighth-seeded Troicki, Nadal converted his first opportunity to go 3-1 up in the second set and served out the win in 1 hour, 27 minutes.
Nadal was made to work hard against Bernard Tomic and Marcos Baghdatis in the early rounds but improved as the tournament progressed and looks to be in good shape for Wimbledon.
The 14-time Grand Slam winner maintained his unbeaten record against Troicki with his fifth win over the 28th-ranked Serb.
Nadal previously won the tournament in 2005 and 2007 when it was still on clay. It made the switch to grass as a Wimbledon tune-up this year. (AP)
Mahut, Goffin victorious at Topshelf Open • Frenchman Nicolas Mahut won his third career title after beating second-seeded David Goffin 7-6 (1), 6-1 at the Topshelf Open, while fifth-seeded Camila Giorgi of Italy won the women’s final in S-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. (AP)
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