Freischaltung » a 70-yard gain in the first quarter to br

PARIS -- For each top athlete, a word. For Usain Bolt, it would have to be speed. For footballs Lionel Messi: balance. For swimmer Michael Phelps: buoyant. But for the new king of mens tennis, Andy Murray, a quality both mental and physical springs to mind: fortitude.Meanies would argue that Murray has taken over the No.1 ranking this week -- the first Briton to reach the summit -- only because the three players who were better than him for so long finally vacated it, a tennis equivalent of John, Paul and George giving Ringo a rare turn at the mic. And there is a modicum of truth in that.Roger Federer, the 17-time major champion who this week dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since October 2002, long had the measure of Murray, beating him in three Grand Slam finals, but is now a largely spent force at age 35.Rafael Nadals creaky body is paying the bill for his brand of nitro-power tennis that won him 14 major titles and the top ranking for a total of 141 weeks to July 2014. The 30-year-old hasnt won a major since then, or even made a semifinal, and has had injuries to both wrists. But his career Grand Slam record against Murray is unequivocal: seven wins in nine encounters, with the last defeat way back at the 2010 Australian Open.And the top dog Murray toppled, the now second-ranked Novak Djokovic, won five of his 12 major titles by beating the Scot in the final. If Djokovic can now regroup, rethink and re-motivate himself with new targets having completed his career Grand Slam this year and then suffering a dip, leaving the door ajar for Murray, then the reign of the new No. 1 could be short.The top ranking, then, doesnt change the fact that Murray is still only, a word that seems uncharitable in the circumstances, the fourth-best player in what has been modern tennis toughest era. But Murray may well be the most stubborn, the eras paragon of perseverance. Being the fourth member of the Big Four for so long could have broken players with less heart. He first got to the No. 2 ranking more than seven years ago and spent a total of 76 weeks there. Thats a long time to be waiting in the wings.But, in the end, Murray outlasted all-comers. He is the sailor who soldiered through storms that chased others back to harbor, the boxer repeatedly floored but never knocked out. He used the beatings he suffered from Federer, Nadal and Djokovic -- losing 20 of the 25 times he played them at the majors -- as reasons to keep improving himself. He could have cursed his luck, been led astray by the mirage that in any other decade, hed have won more than two Wimbledon titles and the U.S. Open by now. But instead Murray just worked even harder, took better care of himself and made sure that when the opportunity finally came, he was ready to seize it.It would be tempting to delve into Murrays past for signposts that explain his ascent to the top.One could argue that cutting his tennis teeth in inhospitable Scottish weather more suited to golf, rugby or football maybe toughened him up. As kids, he and brother Jamie would hit a balloon back and forth over rope hung from a radiator at home.One could also fall into psycho-babble and hazard a guess that surviving the slaughter of 16 children and their teacher by a gunman at his Dunblane Primary School in 1996 helped teach Murray about deep emotional pain and how to rebound from it.Or one could point to the teen-aged Murray who badgered his parents to send him to a tennis academy in Spain as evidence that hes never lacked drive and the willingness to make sacrifices.But more simply, the top ranking is reward for his journey. A long journey, with multiple crossroads where Murray could have turned back and convinced himself that Mounts Federer, Nadal and Djokovic were simply too steep.Instead, he kept climbing.Not the most eloquent of speakers, at least not in public, one phrase of Murrays stands out, delivered after he lost to Federer in the 2012 Wimbledon final.Im going to try this, and its not going to be easy, Murray said, fighting back tears.Specifically, he was talking about how difficult it was to deliver his losers speech to the supportive Center Court crowd.But that philosophy -- not easy and try -- is Murray in a nutshell.---John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jleicester(at)ap.org or follow him at http://twitter.com/johnleicesterDallas Cowboys Shirts . The lawyers filed a 33-page amended complaint Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan, expanding on the suit originally filed Oct. 3 in New York Supreme Court. Arbitrator Fredric Horowitz last week refused to compel Selig to testify in the grievance, and Rodriguez then walked out of the hearing without testifying. Cowboys Jerseys 2021 . -- James Young couldnt wait to apply those tweaks to his jump shot, and the first one he made against UT Arlington told him it could be a good night. https://www.cowboysjerseysale.com/ . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop . The injury bothered Bledsoe in the Suns victory over the Clippers on Monday and he sat out the teams home loss to Memphis on Thursday night. Cheap Cowboys Jerseys . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the remainder of the season by the Bulls.OXFORD, Miss. -- Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen arrived at the postgame press conference with a wide smile on his face and a cigar in his right hand.It was unlit. He said that wasnt the case in the locker room.Its pretty smoky, Mullen said.The Bulldogs had good reason to celebrate on Saturday night following a dominant 55-20 road victory over rival Mississippi in the Egg Bowl.Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald ran for a school-record 258 yards and two touchdowns and also threw for three touchdowns to bring The Golden Egg trophy back to Starkville after two years in the Rebels possession.The Bulldogs (5-7, 3-5 Southeastern Conference) have won five of eight Egg Bowls under Mullen. This rivalry victory -- in front of a 66,038 fans on the Rebels home turf -- was particularly impressive.Every time you win it, its awesome, Mullen said. Every time you lose, its awful. Because it sticks with you. What an unbelievable feeling.The Bulldogs finished with 457 yards rushing and averaged nearly 10 yards per rushing play. Aeris Williams added 191 yards rushing and two touchdowns, but it was Fitzgerald who had the biggest gains, including runs of 70 and 61 yards.Its a phenomenal feeling, Fitzgerald said. Its always great when youre running and no ones around you. To do it in a big time game like this in front of this crowd -- its unreal.Ole Miss (5-7, 2-6) was led by freshman quarterback Shea Patterson, who threw for 320 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Akeem Judd led the Rebels with 107 yards rushing.Mississippi State jumped out to a 27-10 lead by midway through the second quarter largely thanks to big running plays for Fitzgerald and Williams. Ole Miss has struggled with its linebacker play all season and the Bulldogs were eager to exploit that weakness in the middle in the field, hitting the Rebels again and again for big gains.Ole Miss rallied late in the second quarter with 10 straight points to pull within 27-20 by halftime, but the Rebels were outscored 28-0 in the seccond half.dddddddddddd By the fourth quarter, Vaught-Hemingway Stadium was strangely quiet except for a small contingent of Mississippi State fans who cheered every moment.It stinks and I hate it for the fans, the university, the seniors and everybody involved with this program, Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. Its a very disappointing night.THE TAKEAWAYMississippi State: The Bulldogs earn a satisfying ending to the regular season after several frustrating moments this fall. Whats even better for Mississippi State: Several of the teams star players like Fitzgerald (sophomore), Williams (sophomore) and linebacker Leo Lewis (freshman) should have plenty of football left in Starkville.Ole Miss: Its been a disastrous season for the Rebels, who started as the No. 11-ranked team in the country. A porous defense, combined with season-ending injuries to key players like quarterback Chad Kelly and cornerback Kendarius Webster was too much for Ole Miss to overcome.BREAKING RECORDSFitzgerald ran for a 70-yard gain in the first quarter to break the school record for yards rushing by a quarterback. The previous record was 986 by Dak Prescott during the 2014 season. Fitzgerald entered the game with 985.WOMMACKS LAST STANDOle Miss announced about an hour before the game that defensive coordinator Dave Wommack would retire following this season. It was a tough final game for the veteran coach -- the Rebels gave up 566 total yards.Freeze didnt rule out big changes outside of Wommacks departure.We will look at everyone and everybody, Freeze said. That starts with me. When you cant stop their base stuff, its the process or the people. We will evaluate both and weve got to recruit better. Ill be looking for a coordinator that can bring toughness and physicality to our program and players.-----More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 . ' ' '