ear, Atlanta interim manager Brian Snitker said to mlb.com of Inciarte. Thats good

HUNTINGTON, W. Adrian Sampson Jersey .Va. -- For one night in the hills of West Virginia, Lamar Jackson became a magnet. Even before Louisvilles cadre of buses arrived at Marshalls Joan C. Edwards Stadium on Saturday afternoon, a crowd of fans gathered behind the northern end zone, waiting on him to show his face. A middle-aged man carried a magazine he hoped Jackson would sign. He already owned the autographs of Willie Mays and Babe Ruth, and now it was Jacksons turn. Soon, the mans pregnant and enduringly patient wife said, hed have to move all his memorabilia out of the spare bedroom to make room for the baby. Wearing green, it was clear the child would grow up rooting for the Thundering Herd.But allegiances didnt matter when Jackson stepped off the bus to the classic O Fortuna, which is a matter of ritual before every Louisville game. The drums boomed through the loudspeaker, and just like that, every eyeball gravitated toward Jackson, the Cardinals 19-year-old sophomore quarterback who has emerged as college footballs latest superstar. Anyone with a camera, cellphone or otherwise, pointed it straight at Jackson as he made a beeline toward the visiting locker room. Later, something as simple as a game of pitch-and-catch in shorts and a T-shirt drew the attention of at least a dozen on-field reporters.An over-capacity crowd of 40,592 came to witness the Lamar Jackson Experience. They were either going to love him or hate him for what he was about to do to Marshalls defense, but they wouldnt dare look away. Bill Koontz, a 1971 Marshall graduate, drove more than 10 hours from his home in Kansas City, Missouri, to be there. He knew the Herds four-game winning streak over Louisville was about to come to an end. But seeing Jackson in person brought some consolation.Hes Superman, Koontz said. The hell with Cam Newton.Even the referees couldnt keep their cool around Jackson. One official lurched into his pocket during pregame warm-ups as Jackson walked past him on the sideline, fumbling his phone as he rushed to take a picture. He couldnt get the darn thing steady in time. So after Louisville finished stretching, the official waved off all manner of pretense and simply asked Jackson to hold still.Before long, Jackson and the Cardinals were off and running, moving the chains at a blistering pace against an overmatched Marshall defense. Jackson bounced around in the pocket like a pinball, buzzed passes by the earholes of defenders, lobbed touchdowns down the sideline and shrugged off tacklers as he high-stepped into the end zone. Late in the game, a pair of Marshall ball boys stood on the Louisville sideline in awe of Jacksons effortless throwing motion. He flicked his wrist, and off it went like a dart, a tightly wound spiral each and every time.That ball, one of them said to the other, who shook his head in disbelief. I cant get over how pretty it is. Even the long ones. They dont break.Jackson, the Heisman Trophy front-runner, wound up passing for 417 yards and five touchdowns on the night. He scored twice more running the football as Louisville beat Marshall 59-28 to improve to 4-0.College footballs reigning touchdown king was ushered near midfield, where a television crew readied for a postgame interview. Jackson was deferential and kept the focus on his teammates. But defensive end Devonte Fields photobombed the live shot, walking through the background with a sign he borrowed from someone in the crowd. Lamar #8 Jackson For Heisman, it read. Fields shoved a Sharpie in Jacksons hand when the interview ended. Jackson grinned and gave it his sweeping signature.Moments later, a Marshall athletic trainer had something else for Jackson to autograph: a bright green cast wrapped around her right arm. A couple of paces away, a man and his 10-year-old son asked for a photo. Louisvilles director of football ops and the teams strength and conditioning coach shouted that there was no time, that they had to go. But Jackson ignored them, smiled for the camera and patted the boy on the head. Little Kahlief Tye muttered, Awesome, and couldnt manage another word. His big eyes refused to blink as Jackson jogged off the field and on to whats next.On to No. 5-ranked Clemson on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, ABC). On to the next step in Louisvilles quest to crash the playoff. On to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York City.While the rest of the country remains in a daze over the player he has become, Jackson is unfazed. The most electrifying athlete in college football doesnt need another minute to process what being a superhero means or how he has reached 25 touchdowns faster than any player in the past decade -- faster than Newton, faster than Manziel, faster than Mariota or Luck or Tebow. The man many in Louisville call La-Marvelous believed he could do it the entire time.***Lamar Jackson believes hes failing.No, seriously. Ask him.He gave himself a D grade after he scored five touchdowns against then-No. 2 Florida State two weeks ago. An interception bugged him.I think it was seven incomplete passes I threw, he said. Bad balls.Against Marshall, he was even harder on himself. He didnt bother to look down at the stat sheet placed in front of him at the postgame news conference. Final grade: F.Four hundred and seventeen yards and five touchdowns passing is an F? a reporter asked incredulously.How many completions did I have? Jackson shot back.24.Out of what?44.F, Jackson said, shaking his head. F.Its simple math, according to Jackson. Divide 24 by 44, and youll get 54.5 percent. Thats a failing grade in school, he explained.You wont find this in any textbook, but the exchange rate he abides by is four touchdowns for every one interception. Wideout Jaylen Smith said Jackson feels as if he owes that to his teammates when he makes a mistake. Jackson will throw an interception, score the necessary four TDs and tell the offense, All right, were even now.Hes a perfectionist, Smith said.Smith ought to know. The two were roommates last season. Theyd get home after a scrimmage or a game, and the first thing Jackson would do was pick up the phone and call his mother to tell her about everything he messed up on. Jackson wanted to make sure he pointed out all his flaws first, Smith said. Never mind that he scored 23 touchdowns and started seven games as a true freshman, all without knowing most of the playbook.Hes a great competitor, and sometimes when youre a great competitor, things eat at you, Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. The things that absorb your thoughts are the mistakes you make, the ones you just miss. Sometimes you forget about all the really good plays and the great things you do.But what others see as greatness, Jackson sees as ordinary.That spectacular hurdle against Syracuse? He did the same thing during a game in high school at Boynton Beach in South Florida.That blinding speed he showed against Florida State? He ran track, and once won a foot race against NBA star Rajon Rondo.And that cannon for a right arm weve seen all year? Go find the video on YouTube of him throwing a ball from goal line to goal lineWhen Lamar Thomas, a former assistant at Louisville, began recruiting him, Jackson didnt want the typical deluge of compliments and empty promises. All it took was a handshake agreement with Petrino that he would be kept at quarterback. Then Jackson asked Thomas for a scouting report on all the quarterbacks on the roster, and the two sat and discussed their strengths and weaknesses.If he won the starting job, Jackson told Thomas, Im going to take it to the next stratosphere.It took some time to beat out the competition and even more time to learn Petrinos complex offense. But thats where the unique part of Jacksons perfectionism kicks in: He doesnt stay frustrated long. He drops his head, shakes his fist and then lets it roll right off his back.The first pass he ever threw in college was an interception against Auburn. Garrick McGee, who was then Louisvilles offensive coordinator, was worried about the rookie and asked him, Are you all right? He said Jackson told him, That doesnt bother me at all. Jackson just wanted back in. He went to the huddle and told his teammates, We have to score -- fast.Thats when I said to myself, This kid might be special. This guy might be what everyone was looking for, said McGee, who is now the offensive coordinator at Illinois. He was just thinking about what we had to do to win. And thats what separates him from anybody that Ive seen. It has nothing to do with him and his success. He just wants to win. It just so happens that to win hes going to score five touchdowns.What no one could have predicted is that hed average more than five touchdowns.Now McGee thinks the Heisman is Jacksons to lose. He called his former QB Michael Jordan in shoulder pads.It seems the only person who isnt in hysterics over his sudden success is Jackson himself. Since he was 7 years old, he said, he knew he wanted to be somebody playing football.Ive been working hard, he said. Ive been working very hard for a long time. Ive been praying and now its happening.***Sadly, in his quest to take over college football, Jackson has had to relinquish the NBA2K crown he claimed playing with the Cleveland Cavaliers last season. He bought the latest version of the video game when it came out in September, but he hasnt had the energy to open it. When he got home from Marshall at 4 a.m. Sunday, all he wanted was to do was climb in bed and sleep. He rested most of the day, got treatment, lounged around and watched Netflix. Hes trying out the quasi-superhero show The Arrow right now. For comedies, his go-to movie is Friday.Other than that, its schoolwork, listening to the rapper Kodak Black and practice. Football is his hobby, he said. Getting anything more personal than that is a lost cause. Either hes not telling or theres nothing there. When his former high school coach was asked what Jackson does other than football, he said simply, He trains.Im at the stadium for fun. Jackson said. I dont really do anything.Lyndon Clemons, Jacksons former vice principal at Boynton Beach High, said its important to understand that Jackson is still only 19 years old. Theres not a lot extra, he explained. Jackson is an open book, but that doesnt mean there are many pages not earmarked for football. Whats more, his mother is a very private woman, and that has carried over to her son. Its going to take a while before theyre used to all this newfound attention.But watch Jackson long enough, and its easy to see why his nickname was Smiley Face as a child. On the sideline and around the football complex, hes always in a good mood. Even the way he speaks, barely above a whisper, draws you in. Hes effervescent. He seems to giggle constantly. Its only when you bring up the Heisman Trophy and his individual performance that he tightens up a bit.He expected the success, but he didnt understand all the cameras that would follow. Its probably the only thing he didnt plan for. He shuts it out by staying in his room, he said.Deangelo Brown, a Louisville defensive lineman who is one of a handful of fifth-year seniors on the team, said he has never seen Jackson talk about himself. He doesnt worry about Jackson becoming the next Johnny Manziel -- another young, second-year player who was all the rage before fame sent him careening off in the wrong direction -- because, Brown said, Jackson cares too much.Hes way more focused, Brown said. Hes not really all in the party scene, hes not really in all the flashes. Hes just a guy that loves football, loves to have fun, loves to win.Said Jackson: I stay on the path of maintaining. ... If you try to, like, dwell on that like youre the man or something, good things wont happen to you.If he keeps up his current pace, Jackson will break the FBS record for touchdowns (63) with two regular-season games to spare. Colt Brennan, who set the record in 2006 at Hawaii, had 10 fewer scores than Jacksons 25 through four games.On Saturday night in Death Valley, Jackson will go head-to-head against another former sophomore quarterback who found himself in the thick of the Heisman conversation last season: Clemsons Deshaun Watson.Tigers coach Dabo Swinney, like so many others, has fallen all over himself praising Jackson this week. He already has called him a right-handed Michael Vick and pointed out that hes not just a scrambler, but someone who can absolutely throw the ball all over the park.Lamar Jackson is a weapon, no question, Swinney said. He makes a lot of plays. Hes a handful.Brown said the game plan is simple: Stop Watson and keep feeding Lamar the ball.The more chances he gets, the more touchdowns he can score, Brown said.And at this point, any number of touchdowns shouldnt be surprising.After all, its time we all accepted a fact that Louisvilles star quarterback came to grips with long ago: Lamar Jackson belongs in the end zone. Texas Rangers Pro Shop . With his new coach and six-time Grand Slam singles champion Boris Becker watching him during an official match for the first time, Djokovic appeared tentative early against the Slovakian player, who often appeared content to keep the ball in play. Al Oliver Rangers Jersey . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. https://www.cheaprangersbaseball.com/318...ey-rangers.html . The CFLs leading rusher kept adding to his gaudy numbers this season and scored the winning touchdown with just over two minutes to play. The New Westminster, B.C., native plowed three yards into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-saw battle between the two teams with the best records in the CFL. For the St. Louis Cardinals, the time to talk about being the team they feel they can be is just about over.Thursdays 7-0 loss at Cincinnati capped a 5-5 trip that hinted at being so much more after a 4-1 start against the New York Mets and Miami, fellow National League wild-card hopefuls. With two-thirds of the season in the books, St. Louis (57-51) is tied with the Marlins for the second wild card.Beginning with Friday nights visit from the Atlanta Braves, the Cardinals need to figure out how to become the team they want to be, or else face missing the National League playoffs for just the fifth time since 2000.Its August. Youre going to have stuff, St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. They talk about it being the dog days, and these are a good test because youre going to have some struggles.Many of the Cardinals struggles have occurred in Busch Stadium, where they are a pitiful 25-30 a year after going 55-26 en route to a third straight Central Division title and baseballs first 100-win regular season in four years.If St. Louis is to indeed derive an advantage from familiar surroundings and the last at-bat, the upcoming six-game homestand offers a favorable opportunity. After three games with Atlanta (39-69), it welcomes the Reds, who have won one series in their last 10 visits.Whats more, the Cardinals are getting a big boost to their lineup with the return of All-Star Matt Carpenter, who will be activated Friday after missing a month with a strained right oblique.CCarpenter, who was batting . Jim Fregosi Jersey. 298 with 14 homers and 53 RBI at the time of his injury, was on a pace to score and drive in more than 100 runs from the leadoff spot.He and his teammates will face right-hander Joel De La Cruz (0-3, 3.80), who will be making his fourth career start. De La Cruz last pitched on Sunday, working 4 1/3 scoreless innings in a 2-1 win over Philadelphia.Left-hander Jaime Garcia (7-8, 4.30) gets the call for St. Louis, aiming to improve on a disastrous start Saturday night. Going on three days of rest, Garcia allowed four runs in his first 15 pitches and eventually was charged with six runs over 3 1/3 innings in an 11-0 defeat.The Braves are coming off a rain-delayed 5-2 win Thursday night over Pittsburgh, enabling them to notch a series win. Center fielder Ender Inciartes two hits stretched his hitting streak to 15 games.He just keeps swinging that bat, kind of like that guy they saw last year, Atlanta interim manager Brian Snitker said to mlb.com of Inciarte. Thats good to see. The kid has worked really hard, and hes played great defense. Its just really nice to see the bat come alive.The Cardinals will pitch Carlos Martinez (10-6, 2.99) on Saturday night, while the Braves havent named a starter. Sundays series finale matches St. Louis veteran Adam Wainwright (9-5, 4.14) against Mike Foltynewicz (4-5, 4.60). ' ' '