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After a pair of exhibition victories, Connecticut is set to open the season.Heck, yeah, we definitely feel ready, Rodney Purvis told the Hartford Courant after the No. 18 Huskies defeated Southern Connecticut State in the second preseason game. I feel real confident with this group. Weve just got to be more consistent with our effort.Kevin Ollies Huskies, who open the season with a home game against Wagner on Friday night, advanced to the second round of last seasons NCAA Tournament, and appear loaded, with veterans returning and Alterique Gilbert the programs third straight preseason AAC rookie of the year.Coach always says were not one of those teams with five or six McDonalds All-Americans, Purvis said. So we have to work extra hard for everything we get. Our energy and our effort can cover up for not having all those All-Americans, so we just have to bring it every night on the floor with our defensive intensity.The Huskies (25-11, 11-7 in conference last season) come in eight spots higher than Cincinnati (one spot out of the Top 25) in the preseason rankings, but they were tabbed just behind the Bearcats in the preseason conference poll.Ollie, who led the Huskies to their fourth NCAA title in 2014, was mentioned as a possible candidate for the Los Angeles Lakers job that went to Luke Walton. But Ollie remains in Storrs. And his team is loaded.Added to the UConn mix is 6-foot-7 Mike Larrier, who out last year after transferring from Virginia Commonwealth.We have a lot of great guards and they did a great job of finding us and sharing the ball, said Amida Brimah, the 2014-15 AAC defensive player of the year who battled injury last season. Theyre very athletic, and any time they get the ball theyre ready to just push the ball.Former Husky Scott Burrell, whose Southern Connecticut team lost an exhibition game to UConn, was impressed.Their length is like an NBA team, he said, like when the Lakers had (Pau) Gasol, (Lamar) Odom and (Andrew) Bynum. Every pass is hard. They play hard, they cut hard; their guards are strong.Theyre tough. They have a lot of talent, a lot of weapons. And some of those young guards arent in a rhythm yet. When those guys get better and more comfortable, with those big wings they are going to be tough. Kevin did a great job recruiting.Wagner, the Northeast Conferences regular-season champ and tournament runner-up in a 25-win season in 2015-16, was picked to finish second in the Northeast Conference. Two Seahawks, Michael Carey and Corey Henson, were tabbed first team All-NEC preseason.The Seahawks defeated St. Bonaventure in the NIT last year -- the first postseason victory in the history of the program.Henson led the conference by hitting 40.2 percent of his 3-pointers -- nailing 74 long-range shots.Last years success could be a little bit of a double-edged sword, coach Bashir Mason said. Obviously, it felt good to bounce back from a 10-win season with the same guys pretty much, and the guys are excited about that. But on the other end of it is the satisfaction part. So, we have to fight complacency. Just work every day to try to put ourselves back in the same exact position. John Riggins Jersey . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. Doug Williams Womens Jersey . -- Bryant McKinnie came out of his stance and lowered his shoulder into a practice squad player, causing a crisp thud to reverberate in the Miami Dolphins practice bubble. https://www.redskinssportsgoods.com/Womens-Clinton-Portis-Inverted-Jersey/ .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Charles Mann Jersey . -- Gus Malzahn finally had his day in Fayetteville. Sam Huff Redskins Jersey . Bjorn, who had a 36-hole total of 8-under 134, made a testing six-foot putt to save par on the 16th and a birdie on the 17th before bogeying the final hole after a misjudged approach shot. American Kevin Streelman was in second place after shooting a 69. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- There is no script.In fact, the first time J.T. Barrett stood up in front of his teammates, fists punching the air and voice rising, there wasnt even a plan for him to speak at all.He was just a redshirt freshman preparing to make his first start for Ohio State in a neutral-site game against Navy. Barrett had the starting job for less than two weeks, and there was no reason for the Buckeyes to change their pregame plans from the previous seasons or carve out any time for an untested quarterback.I dont remember what I said, but I remember standing up on a chair, said Barrett, now a redshirt junior. Before that, it was always [then-Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom] Herman -- he would say something and then we left. I dont know what happened, I just felt like I had something to say.Come to find out, Ive always got something to say.Every game since then, whether hes injured or healthy, struggling or setting records, starting or coming off the bench, the Buckeyes have come to expect their final dose of motivation from Barretts mouth.And hes more than happy to oblige, as loud as he possibly can.We dont have enough juice, and what I dont understand is, we dont have another day. We dont have another second, we dont have another minute to waste. Theres not going to be another 2016 team. Theres not going to be another game against Rutgers. We dont get a do-over. Weve got to find some juice, weve got to find something, because were not going to do that to them. Ill be damned if we do that to our seniors. Not today. Were going to play like its the last time -- every time. -- Oct. 1 speech vs. RutgersThe word was spreading throughout the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, but Ohio State coach Urban Meyer was having a hard time buying it.Barrett is one of the most soft-spoken players on his roster during the week, an introspective kid with a low voice that even to this day can be difficult to pick up on a microphone during his frequent media appearances.But over and over, Meyer was hearing about the oratory skills of the first quarterback he recruited and signed after arriving at Ohio State and the leadership he was already providing even from his low perch on a crowded depth chart.Thats what I heard, but I didnt see that much, Meyer said. Coach Herman would tell me about it, his high school coach [Jim Garfield] would tell me about it, [strength coach] Mickey Marotti would tell me about it. And I said, Really? He had the ACL injury when he got here, he was a nonfactor in 2013 and I really didnt know him very well. But I kept hearing about him, though.I would see this very introverted, quiet guy and just go, Really? But I trust the people telling me, and I certainly see it now.Theres no way to avoid it at this point, and Meyer has seen it countless times since. But the legend was growing way back then as his staff whispered about a speech to fellow recruits during a campus visit. Marotti raved about the way Barrett attacked workouts and tried to motivate those around him, even at such an early point in his college career. And Garfield had numerous examples he could point to from his own experiences with Barrett at Rider High School in Wichita Falls, Texas.It was always the pregame speech, Garfield said. We would always come in before warm-ups and J.T. would have free rein. Really, I cant focus on just one that stands out, because it was throughout his career, and he was doing that for us since his sophomore year.Everything he says was like gold.Listen up, listen up -- 2014 was not a mistake. It wasnt a mistake. That happened because we were real. We are Ohio State, thats what we do. We go to peoples places, we lock that s--- up and then we leave. We lock it up and then we leave, every single time. Thats what we do. Were going to hit them in the mouth, every single time. -- Oct. 15 speech at WisconsinThere is no rehearsal during the week, no notecard to read off, and even in the final moments before Barrett takes his stage in front of the offense, no firm idea exactly what message he needs to deliver.But he reads the room, trying to figure out exactly what the Buckeyes need to hear while also opening up about his own feelings. So when the time comes, the words spill out in a rapid-fire delivery as soon as offensive coordinator Ed Warinner barks, What you got for us, J.T.?The first time I didd it, yeah, I was nervous, Barrett said.dddddddddddd Youre sitting there -- especially when I was in high school -- sitting there like, J.T., what do you say? You say youre going to speak up, but what exactly do you need to say? What are you going to say that is going to get the guys going or is really going to resonate with them?Honestly, Im like, dont worry about what youre going to say. Its important just that you know there is something that needs to be said. Thats what I think about. Something needs to be said right now, and I dont want to let the moment go by because the message is never going to be the same. I may have time to think about what Im going to say, and maybe what I could say would be really good, but its not the same if the moment passed when you needed to say it. ?That leaves the emphasis on timing, emotion and a little bit of theatrics instead of perhaps prose that could be passed down through time for its sheer beauty.The messages arent complicated, and based on ESPN.coms film study, they often include straightforward references to running the ball offensively, stopping the rush on defense, and scoring a lot of touchdowns at some point. Barrett is also a ball of motion, stalking through the rows of teammates in front of him, punching his fist or swinging the towel he usually has in his right hand. And by the end, his screams can be hard to decipher as the intensity soars and the Buckeyes break a huddle to head to the field.I mean, the football side of him, hes intense, right guard Billy Price said. When the moment is on and hes ready to go, its go time. The best thing about him, though, is he hits home. He brings the juice. What matters in our program, our culture, thats what he brings and what he emphasizes.Hes a person that when he talks, you have to stop and listen, no matter who you are. If youre just walking down High Street, youre going to want to listen. OK, I can dig what youre saying, lets go do it. Hes just dynamic.They want to talk. We bout that action. This is not what they want. I dont want you to talk to nobody in the stands. On the sideline. On the other team. Nothing. This is on us. This is us against everybody else. -- Sept. 17 speech at OklahomaThe comparisons are inevitable for any leader in a Meyer program, let alone a record-setting quarterback in the power spread offense.By this stage in his career, Barrett has officially earned the right to get the Tebow-ish tag from his coach, effectively the highest praise Meyer can bestow on somebody given Tim Tebows track record at Florida both on and off the field.Ryan Stamper has been in the locker-room audience for both QBs, first as a fellow captain with Tebow at Florida and now as a director of player development with Ohio State. And for all the similarities between the two, there are also some notable differences.Tebow, he was just a different animal, Stamper said. There were a lot of things that he led by example on the field, but there were also things he just didnt do because of his beliefs, and there were a lot of things we wouldnt do. J.T. is a leader on the field, off the field, but when you hear him drop an F-bomb or getting crunk to the same music youre getting crunk to, that makes him more a part of the boys. Thats why I think guys respect him so much.He is who he is, theres nothing fake about this kid ... [and] hes still one of the boys. To me, both messages are equally important and get guys going.If anything, Barrett might get himself too worked up by the time his speech is over.The speeches dont usually last long, and he needed only 23 seconds to make his point before leading the Buckeyes out to take on Northwestern last month. But after Barrett reaches the boiling point and his speech is done, he actually throws some headphones on with low-key R&B music or some chill Drake from his playlist to take it down a notch.I have to calm down, because I cant play like that, Barrett said. As a quarterback, you cant go out and do your job with that kind emotion.But I definitely want to make sure the rest of my guys are jacked up.Time after time, Barretts speeches do the trick. And thats one thing Ohio State can officially script in the pregame routine as long as hes around. ' ' '