We are going, we are going, we are going to Brazil.

The U.S. men's national team is headed to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. For the fourth straight time, Team USA defeated Mexico 2-0 in Columbus, making a statement with a dominating performance against the desperate Mexico national team.

Via Twitter: @MLS

El Tri came out quick against a conservative start by Team USA, but weren't able to capitalize on early opportunities and failed to create any sort of response in the second half after the U.S., playing without stars Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore, scored twice.

Miguel Tovar / Getty

Eddie Johnson put the U.S. ahead with a spectacular header in the 49th minute and Landon Donovan later put the game away off of a nice cross from Mix Diskerud, who had come in as a substitute just minutes earlier. The U.S. team also got some help from Honduras, who tied Panama 2-2, officially punching USA's ticket to the World Cup in regional qualifying.

Via Twitter: @ussoccer

And that's how it's done, boys! U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

Via Twitter: @ussoccer

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Just in time for football season.

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If it doesn’t get removed, Mets fans will be greeted by it before tonight’s game.

Via copyranter email tips

Via copyranter email tips

Via email:

Late Tuesday evening, a group of Miami Ad School (Brooklyn) students spray chalked a tribute to the victims of the 9/11 attacks at Citi Field. Mets fans exiting the subway will be greeted with an over twenty-foot rendition of the home team's logo, but with a poignant addition to the skyline: the silhouette of the twin towers. Underneath, a message to "Never Forget."
"We thought there was a special significance to this home game, an opportunity that couldn't be missed," the students explained. "In twelve years life has returned to normal, people are enjoying the city again, but we wanted to remind everyone to keep their thoughts with those we lost that day."

Nice job. Let's hope it doesn't get buffed.

This is just brutal.

A recent Pennsylvania high school football game turned violent when a player was seen ripping off his opponent's helmet and then twice bashing him in the head with it. The whole incident was caught on tape.

Via wgal.com

The victim was reportedly able to walk away with a laceration on the top of his head, and later returned to the game after it was determined that he did not have a concussion.

Via wgal.com

Reports indicate that the police are looking into the incident and the teenager may face assault charges.

Watch the video here:

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Of course I know what a zone read is. *Runs away*

You may know what some of these terms mean. You may even know all of them. But at some point in your football-watching career, you definitely didn't, but you pretended you did, to try and look all smart.

The "Tampa 2" defense.

What you think it means: "It's when two...linebackers...do...something?"

What it actually means: A 4-3 defense popularized by Tony Dungy and Monte Kiffin with the Buccaneers (hence the name). The defining characteristic is the pivotal, sitting middle linebacker, who drops back into a deep zone if he reads a pass play.

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What a "non-reviewable play" is.

What you think it means: "I'm pretty sure it's just on scoring plays and...whenever it helps my team."

What it actually means: In fairness, it's pretty complicated. The Football Officials of America have a one-sheet on this you can read, which may or may not be a silly way to spent 10 minutes. Or you could just continue to take Jon Gruden's word for it.

Getty/Jonathan Daniel/Staff

What a "football move" is.

What you think it means: "It's when you move...upfield? In a natural way? Right?"

What it actually means: Mike Pereira, former Vice President of Officiating for the NFL, somewhat helpfully explained this on Twitter: "A football move = to perform an act common to the game like pitching, passing, or turning upfield." Pitching? Got it. Wait. What?

bleacherreport.com

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Act like a professional, will ya?

Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was fined $100,000 after he was flagged for an illegal chop-block during the Lions opening day game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Via gamerewind.nfl.com

And now ESPN is reporting that Suh is appealing the fine, declaring the amount excessive. Oh really? Excessive, huh? Sort of like this tackle on Jake Delhomme?

Via nfl.com

Or this open-handed punch to the back of Cutler's head?

Via gamerewind.nfl.com

Or how about that time you ripped off Andy Dalton's helmet and then slammed him to the ground?

Via nfl.com

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Never to be forgotten.

Nope.

And even worse:

Do yourself a favor and stay out of this kid’s way.

Remember this Pee Wee football player who was pushing a football across the living room floor with his head when he was 4 months old? The one that did his first pull-up when he was 18 months, ran a 40 in 6.5 flat, bench pressed twice his own weight and won the 8-year-old division of Pass, Punt, and Run when he was 5 years old?

Remember how everyone thought he was the most badass, physical specimen to ever grace a Pee Wee football field? Well, we were wrong.

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All you want is to love the Bears. Why must they make it so hard sometimes?

Believing at the start of every season that Jay Cutler has the potential to be an elite quarterback.

It's his contract year, and everyone knows you get magical powers in your contract year!

Via brodin-the-allfather.tumblr.com

And having to justify Jay Cutler's inconsistent performance and bad attitude by week seven.

"But his teammates really respect him!"

Via juanelway.com

Getting excited about "Bear Weather," because you know that the Bears play better in cold weather.

Everyone knows it's a fact, OK?

Via gapers.tumblr.com

Seeing the Bears actually play in "Bear Weather."

This was just something you invented to distract us from how freezing Soldier Field is, isn't it?

Via i.telegraph.co.uk

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“You couldn’t find a Yankee on the streets of New York City. You couldn’t find a Yankee down at Ground Zero, talking to the guys who were working 24/7.” Unsurprisingly, Valentine is wrong.

Bobby Valentine decided to mark the anniversary of 9/11 on Wednesday by talking about the Yankees not doing enough for New York after the Sept. 11, attacks.

Adam Hunger / Reuters

"Let it be said that during the time from 9/11 to 9/21, the Yankees were (not around). You couldn't find a Yankee on the streets of New York City. You couldn't find a Yankee down at Ground Zero, talking to the guys who were working 24/7. Many of them didn't live here, and so it wasn't their fault. And many of them did not partake in all that, so there was some of that jealousy going around. Like, 'Why are we so tired? Why are we wasted? Why have we been to the funerals and the firehouses, and the Yankees are getting all the credit for bringing baseball back?' And I said 'This isn't about credit, guys. This is about doing the right thing.'"

Via deadspin.com

Members of Yankees visited a staging area for volunteers and rescue workers, a hospital that was treating injured victims and the Park Avenue Armory, where people gathered to await news of missing family members.

Koji Sasahara, File / AP

"There was this lady, I never even got her name, but she was introduced to me by a paramedic," Bernie Williams said. "She had a look on her face of total devastation, and what can you say to a person like that? The only thing I could come up with was 'I think you need a hug.' I hugged her and she started crying. It was very emotional, and something I'll never forget." Williams was one of a dozen or so Yankees players and coaches to caravan around the city, stopping at the rescue staging area at the Javits Center, the Armory and St. Vincent's Hospital. "I hope it made a difference," said Scott Brosius. "You could say hello, shake someone's hand, take a picture with them, and just for a moment, get a smile from them. I know it was good for us to go down there, I hope it was good for them also. I hope we were able to lift their spirits for a few moments."

Via mlb.mlb.com

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“He’s going to work for them for a week,” a source says.

Eric Thayer / Reuters

WASHINGTON — Dennis Rodman won't actually be coaching North Korea's basketball team in advance of the 2016 Olympics, according to a source close to the former NBA star who is familiar with the arrangement.

"He's not going to be coaching the team," the source said. "He's going to work for them for a week. He's going to be training them and so forth for a week."

Rodman announced during a press conference in New York on Monday that he had agreed to train the North Korean Olympic basketball team for the next three years as well as bring a team of 12 former NBA players to play against North Korean players in an exhibition tournament this winter.

"They said, 'Dennis, we'd love you to do one thing for us: For the next Olympics, can you train our Olympic team to be in the Olympics, for the next three years,'" Rodman said on Monday. "I'm like, 'OK. OK, I will.'"

According to the source familiar with the actual arrangement, Rodman will not be coaching the team for the next three years, though he was offered the job. But he will be working with North Korean players for a week in December in preparation for an exhibition game scheduled for January sponsored by Paddy Power, the Irish online betting company. (In the press conference, Rodman said that Paddy Power would be putting up $3 million to $5 million for the tournament).

"There's the one-week training camp in December, then they're going to see how the games go in January," the source said. "Then it's subject to negotiation. The sides will discuss and maybe negotiate a second tournament in Europe in June 2014."

Rodman will not be paid directly by the North Koreans, the source said, though it had been announced during the press conference on Monday by a Paddy Power representative that "The Ministry of Sports of DPR Korea will cover lodging and meals for Mr. Rodman and his colleagues including former NBA players for the duration of their stay in DPR Korea." Rodman's trips will include other activities, the source said, like visiting "schools and colleges and stuff like that" with the other NBA players.

A spokesperson for Rodman refused to comment on anything related to the North Korea deal and said that Rodman wasn't doing any interviews. Asked specifically about whether or not Rodman will be actually coaching the North Korean basketball team for the Olympics, the spokesperson hung up on BuzzFeed. A spokesperson for Paddy Power didn't return a request for comment.

Rodman has been to North Korea twice this year, once with a team from Vice and once last week. He enjoys a rare amount of access to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Despite promising to do so earlier this summer, Rodman has reversed course and refused to ask Kim Jong-un to free imprisoned American Kenneth Bae.

"Guess what, though — that's not my job," Rodman said during the press conference. "My job is to go there and try to break grounds, that's it, and I think I'm doing that right now, and not to rescue somebody."

The demo for “Blue” looks like something the average fan could get behind — if they can get over the part where you have to wear Google Glass.

youtube.com

There are good reasons to be skeptical of the incoming saturation of Google Glass as it pertains to sports and life in general. But watch the above video, for a forthcoming Google Glass app called Blue, and you get a sense of how sports and Glass can coexist in a way that a normal person could actually get behind (even if you will still kind of look like this guy).

img.talkandroid.com

Judging from online reaction, it taps directly into the sports fan's desire to know everything they can about what's happening around them. There's more statistical info to look at today than ever before, but that can take away from the game: take your eyes off the field to look at your iPhone or a pitch counter high above the third-base side or (at home) your laptop, and you can end up missing out more than you gain.

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This is why it’s important to play catch with your children.

In the top of the sixth inning of Wednesday night's Atlanta-Miami game, Braves outfielder Evan Gattis drilled a solo home run into the left field seats.

And because no one in Miami can catch, the ball took out a young fan.

With a direct body shot.

Knocking him straight out of his shoes.

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Who says animal striped sweatpants can’t be business casual?

Zubaz are perfect for lovely Saturday afternoons antiquing with the wifey.

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It's also the perfect accent piece for your well-groomed mustache.

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Zubaz tell your future bride, "I take this marriage business seriously."

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While telling your buddies, "I'm still gonna party tho."

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Jaborian McKenzie suited up for a game just last weekend.

Alcorn State played an away game last weekend at Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss.

One of the four former Vanderbilt football players currently being accused of multiple counts of rape following an incident in which a woman was allegedly raped and videotaped while unconscious in a campus dorm has transferred to Alcorn State and, last Saturday, returned three kickoffs for 80 yards in a matchup against Mississippi State.

The Nashville Post was the first to report the news about Jaborian "Tip" McKenzie, 19, of Woodville, Mississippi. McKenzie was released from jail on Aug. 10 after turning himself in and posting bail. He and three other players stand accused of five counts of aggravated rape and two counts of sexual assault.

An attorney representing McKenzie would not comment. An Alcorn State spokesperson did not return a call seeking comment about the process by which McKenzie was admitted to the school and allowed to play for the team. Alcorn State plays in the "Football Championship Subdivision" of the NCAA, one step below the highest "Football Bowl Subdivision" level, but they do provide athletic scholarships and had offered McKenzie such a scholarship when he was a high school recruit.

Cory Batey, 19, of Nashville, another former Vanderbilt player charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault, is in the process of transferring. According to Batey's attorney, Worrick Robinson, the redshirt freshman has been accepted at another local school but is currently locked in a dispute with Vanderbilt over the release of his school transcripts.

Brandon Banks, 19, of Brandywine, Md., who is also accused of rape and sexual assault, plans to finish in Maryland vida online courses and then will likely transfer, according to Banks' attorney Mark Scruggs, who would not comment further.

An attorney representing Brandon Vandenberg, the California junior college transfer who allegedly brought the victim to the room where the incident took place, did not return a call seeking comment about the 20-year-old's plans.

The next court appearance for the four has been pushed back a month to Oct. 16, the Davidson County District Attorney's Office announced on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Vanderbilt wide receiver Chris Boyd, who was charged with being an accessory after the fact for allegedly telling Vandenberg to delete video of the incident, will appear in court tomorrow. Sources say prosecutors and Boyd's attorney have reached a plea deal.

According to a source close to the negotiations, Boyd will likely plead guilty under "judicial diversion," which is a conditional plea of guilt under which Boyd will likely be placed on probation and, as long as he complies with the terms of probation, eventually have his charge expunged.

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Follow golf etiquette or pay the consequences.

Golf courses around the country are plagued by brash and inconsiderate players who refuse to abide by the unwritten rules of the game. Their indiscretions routinely go unreported and unpunished. Frustrated golfers have been waiting for a hero to arise from the unreplaced divots and unraked sand traps — that man is Dick Fowler, P.I..

The hot-tempered, badge-toting mustachioed alter-ego of professional golfer Rickie Fowler, Dick Fowler P.I. is a man on a mission to reform and eliminate these assholes from the golf course.

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Commish makes offhand — but perhaps significant — jab at IOC’s handling of Sochi.

Mike Stobe / Getty Images

During an appearance on a panel at this week's Beyond Sport Summit on sports and social activism, outgoing NBA Commissioner David Stern took a shot at the International Olympic Committee for, essentially, being a bunch of fraidycats in their interactions with the Russian government about gay rights and the upcoming Sochi Olympics. Stern specifically alluded to new IOC President Thomas Bach's first conversation with Vladimir Putin after being elected to the IOC top spot; Bach told reporters that he did not raise the issue of Russia's anti-gay law during the conversation. From Philly.com:

"I'm gonna behave myself, for the record here, which is unlike me," NBA commissioner David Stern said Wednesday, speaking as part of a panel that included Ed Rendell and was moderated by ESPN anchor and Philly native Kevin Negandhi. "But you know, the first phone call to the new head of the Olympics [was] from President [Vladimir] Putin, and everyone wants to talk about the Russian law on homosexuality. Think about the opportunities that sports have to make a continuing statement, and the only thing that we're saying in that context is 'Shhhh! No one say anything!'"

The Olympics have been good to the NBA: The 1992 Dream Team's run through the Barcelona summer games kick-started the league's effort to make itself an international presence. Last year, there were more than 80 players in the league from outside the United States. Meanwhile, some of the league's biggest foreign markets are places where being openly gay is still considered unwise.

That David Stern would say something mischievous isn't surprising — he's stepping down as commissioner early next year and has always enjoyed goading opponents. He's also a frequent donor to Democratic politicians. But he's also been long criticized for forcing a bland corporate image on players to maintain the NBA's mainstream palatability. And his successor at the league's helm is a protégé, longtime Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver. His choice to poke at an issue that's sensitive to major NBA partners could be an auspicious development for LGBT rights advocates. As NBA franchise owners have long known, David Stern is a good person to have on your side of a fight.

h/t Towleroad

Every professional sports team needs a dog calendar.

For the past several years the Baltimore Orioles have made a calendar to benefit OriolesREACH and BARCS — Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter. Over that time the Orioles have raised close to $100,000 in support of the organization. So one day a year the Orioles players bring their pets to the ballpark and have a photo shoot. It's really freaking adorable and for a great cause.

mlb.mlb.com

Manny Machado and Kobe his Alaskan Klee Kai.

MLB.com

J.J. Hardy and Layla a pit bull terrier mix.

Todd Olszewski/The Baltimore Orioles

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Just remember: what is seen cannot be unseen.

Miami Dolphins

"Cuuuuuuute!" — My wife.

Via blogs.palmbeachpost.com

Arizona Cardinals

If only the endzone was made of birdseed.

Via forbes.com

San Diego Chargers

It is sort of dumb that they were named after people yelling "Charge!" at sporting events. If that trend continues, the new name of the Chargers might be "Qualcomm Stadium SUCKS!"

Via sports.espn.go.com

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

"I might not always play good football, but when I do, no one is more surprised than myself."

Via fyeahhotathletes.tumblr.com

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NFL.com posted a news story this afternoon about MLB’s issue with brain injuries.

Al Messerschmidt / Getty Images Sport

National Football League higher-ups would like to make sure you know that football isn't the only sport with a concussion problem. Don't forget about baseball!

That's the gist of a story published today on NFL.com, headlined "Concussion issue continues to grow in Major League Baseball." It's mostly a summary of reporting done by USA Today and Newsday, with a brief detour to blame concussions problems in both leagues on players' "culture." (The bolding is ours.)

Here's the text of the piece, in case it's taken down:

Concussions have been a major concern in Major League Baseball this season. About a dozen catchers have been placed on the 7-day concussion list because of head injuries, including former MVP Joe Mauer, who has not returned to the Minnesota Twins after almost a month on the sidelines.

USA Today looked at the rise in head injuries among catchers in baseball, showing the trend has been increasing for the past two years.

Teams have put players on the disabled list due to concussions or head injuries 18 times this year, five more than all of last season and seven more than in 2011, when the seven-day concussion DL was implemented. In 10 of those 18 instances, the players were catchers, including the Boston Red Sox's David Ross twice.

The injuries are having an effect on playoff races, sidelining Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila for two weeks in August and Kansas City Royals All-Star Salvador Perez for a week early that month.

John Jaso, who ranked first in on-base percentage among the AL West-leading Oakland Athletics before sustaining a concussion July 24, has not shaken off symptoms and is likely out for the year.

Plus, it appears MLB is dealing with the same concussion culture that the NFL has been trying to change. Players say many of their peers are playing with head injuries.

"I guarantee you there are some guys playing with concussions now because they feel like it's not serious and they can just keep playing," said Chicago Cubs catcher Dioner Navarro, who considers himself fortunate to have had just two in his career. "The one thing we know now is concussions are serious injuries and you can't mess around with them."

Much remains unknown about the injury, which usually heals within a week but sometimes lingers for months.

Barry Jordan, director of the Brain Injury Program at Burke Rehabilitation Hospital in White Plains, N.Y., said no two concussions are identical simply because some people are more predisposed to sustain them than others.

"There are different variables that will influence recovery," he said. "And if you have a concussion and you continue to play and you keep aggravating it, it may cause a concussion to last longer."

Meanwhile, New York Yankees backup catcher Austin Romine told Newsday that he is still having post-concussion symptoms.

Austin Romine said the headaches are mostly gone but "issues" remain. And until those clear up, the backup catcher, who left Tuesday night's game here with a concussion after taking a foul ball off his mask, won't be available.

"With these things you never know," Romine said yesterday. "There are still things you have to take care of before you get back on the field."

Joe Girardi said Romine was scheduled to take an impact test, which is administered by MLB, sometime last night.

Romine, who suffered a far more severe concussion on a play at the plate in 2011 when he was with Double-A Trenton, described the test. "A bunch of memorization stuff," he said. "Very tedious and it takes a long time and it's hard."

-- Bill Bradley, contributing editor