oose Gossage, and since his retirement, Pettitte?Call it a send-off, off the field, but he is going to be around, he is going to be intimately involved sooner rather than later in shaping t

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The tenaciousness of top-ranked Notre Dames defense, the speed of its offense and a crowd of 8,106 overwhelmed No. 17 Washington early in the Preseason WNIT final on Sunday and the Huskies never recovered.The Fighting Irish jumped to a 12-0 start and led 25-8 at the end of the first quarter en route to a 71-60 victory on Sunday as Arike Ogunbowale led Notre Dame with 17 points and Kathryn Westbeld added 14 points and eight rebounds. Ogunbowale and Marina Mabrey had four steals each as Notre Dame forced 17 turnovers, leading to 19 points.Transition is our game. We want to get out and run, Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. I think thats one of the things were known for.Washington coach Mike Neighbors said the male players who the Huskies normally practice against werent available the past few days so it made it tougher to prepare for Notre Dames speed.Wow are they fast, he said.After trailing by as many as 20 points early in the second quarter and 19 late in the third quarter, the Huskies (3-1) closed to 63-53 on a basket by Chantel Osahor with 5:53 left. But Ogunbowale hit a basket inside and Turner hit a free throw and scored on a rebound as the Irish regained control.Turner added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Irish (4-0).Kelsey Plum, who entered the game averaging 30 points, finished with 22 points on 7 of 19 shooting, including 2 of 6 from 3-point range. Plum credited Notre Dames defense.They sat on my left hand the entire game. They made me take a step back, fadeaway jump shots, and I didnt knock as many down as I should have, she said.The Huskies entered the game shooting 48.2 percent from 3-point range, but only shot 32 percent on Sunday.Washington, which hadnt trailed by more than seven points in its first three games, missed their first five shots and had four turnovers while the Irish hit 5 of 8 shots.I think once we got punched in the mouth we just settled down, and said, `Thats OK. Thats why theyre No. 1 in the country. Lets start playing basketball now. So I think that initial punch, it was cool to see our team battle throughout and play them even, Plum said. I think that will help us in the tournament and future big games. I think well be a little bit more prepared from the jump.BIG PICTUREWashington: The Huskies, playing on the road for the first time, struggled shooting early and couldnt hit consistently from 3-point range as they usually do. ... They fell 0-7 all-time against teams ranked No. 1.Notre Dame: After struggling both offensively and defensively in a four-point win against Green Bay, the Irish played much better at both and in extending their home winning streak to 34 games.POLL IMPLICATIONSWashington: The Huskies outscored the Irish 52-46 after a slow start so the loss shouldnt hurt them in the poll and could help them.Notre Dame: The win over a ranked team might be enough to keep hold of the top ranking, although the Irish could be hurt by the way they struggled to a four-point win over Green Bay on Thursday.HE SAID IT:Were not used to playing in front of 8,100 people. So that had a lot to do with it, Neighbors said.UP NEXTWashington: The Huskies host Idaho on Tuesday and Seattle on Saturday before playing at Portland on Sunday.Notre Dame: The Irish play Louisiana-Lafayette in Houston on Tuesday, a neutral-site home game for the Irish so Turner can play near her home in Pearland, before returning home to face TCU at home on Saturday.Cheap Custom Football Jerseys . Pedro scored from a pass by Lionel Messi in the 33rd minute and added two more goals in the 47th and 72nd after Valdes saved his second penalty in four days following his stop in Wednesdays 4-0 over Ajax in the Champions League. Custom Football Jerseys Online . William Carrier opened the scoring for Cape Breton (6-4-2), but Andrew Ryan tied the game and Brent Andrews put the Mooseheads (8-6-0) in front for good with a short-handed goal at 13:49 of the second period. http://www.footballcustomjerseys.com/custom-new-orleans-saints-jerseys-398c.html . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Custom Cincinnati Bengals Jerseys . The Oilers come in having lost five in a row (0-4-1) and 16 of their last 20 games, dropping a 2-1 decision to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. Custom Detroit Lions Jerseys . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team.NEW YORK -- When the idea of offering Alex Rodriguez a position as a special adviser -- meant to soften the blow of giving one of the games all-time greatest players his outright release -- was floated by New York Yankees assistant GM Jean Afterman, it drew a distinct reaction from her boss.I thought it was f---ing crazy, Brian Cashman said. He aint taking no coaching job.Cashmans skepticism was shared by manager Joe Girardi.I was somewhat surprised because I know how much he loves to play, Girardi said. [But] if I could see him doing anything that is another passion of his, of sharing the game with young players, that part Im not surprised.It turns out the suggestion of Afterman found a very important pair of receptive ears: those of Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner. He liked the idea, and presented it to A-Rod, who agreed to it privately and at his emotional news conference last Sunday at Yankee Stadium.And yet, an unanswered question remains: Why?Why would Rodriguez, the 41-year-old slugger who has hit more home runs than all but three players in baseball history and clearly believes he can hit more, take on the financially unrewarding and time-consuming task of teaching teenagers how to play baseball?And why would Steinbrenner, no doubt stung by the acrimonious and litigious appeal by A-Rod of his 211-game suspension due to the Biogenesis affair and already loath to swallow the remainder of an ill-advised 10-year, $275 million contract extension, even want Rodriguez around anymore?The answers are complex, and in some cases, unknowable. But in extensive interviews with Rodriguez, his teammates and Yankees front-office executives, many of whom spoke to ESPN.com only on condition of anonymity, a picture emerges of a co-dependent relationship between a player and a team the bonds of which are stronger than any lingering resentment on either side. The Yankees need A-Rod, and A-Rod needs the Yankees.For Steinbrenner, having Rodriguez as a member of the Yankees family could hearken back to the days when his father, George M. Steinbrenner III, maintained a similarly tempestuous love-hate relationship with Reggie Jackson, a relationship that endures six years after The Boss death. Jackson and 2009 World Series MVP Hideki Matsui are the only other members of the organization with the special adviser title.And for Rodriguez, a continuing association with the Yankees, the team of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Derek Jeter, once one of A-Rods closest friends, is a way to keep his legacy as a baseball player alive, long after the debates about his off-the-field transgressions have faded.Cashman, and to a lesser extent Girardi, apparently misread a couple of facets of Rodriguezs personality and ego: the part that sees himself as a teacher and mentor to young players, and the part that enjoys playing the role of respected elder statesman in the clubhouse.Many of Rodriguezs teammates are wowed by his career numbers, and the overwhelming majority of them are impressed by his work ethic, even at 41 and with no apparent future as a player with the ballclub.And for many of them, playing with A-Rod was a dream come true, a boyhood idol turned teammate.For young kids, everybody watched him, everybody wanted to be like him, said Starlin Castro, who shares A-Rods Dominican ancestry.Castro, who became a Yankee this winter after a trade with the Chicago Cubs, recalled his first meeting with A-Rod. The first time I saw him, I was scared to say hi, said Castro, who crossed paths with his idol at second base while playing shortstop for the Cubs during the Yankees trip to Wrigley in 2011.But when Castro joined the Yankees in spring training this February, he found himself sitting at the same table with Rodriguez in the players lounge, and the two struck up a conversation that turned into a friendship. Once he felt comfortable, Castro peppered A-Rod with questions: How do you prepare for the season? How can you be so successful year in and year out? How can you be so good?Now, we talk like we have known each other for a long time, Castro said. Now, the two of them hit in the same BP group, go to the weight room at the same time, eat lunch together and hang around in the hotel lobby in a group reduced by one when Carlos Beltran was traded at the deadline.The bilingual Rodriguez holds a special attraction for the young Latinos on the Yankees roster; in the past, he has mentored Eduardo Nunez, Jose Pirela and Yangervis Solarte.More prominently, Girardi credits Rodriguez with helping Robinson Cano reach a higher level as a Yankee. In Girardis view, Rodriguezs advice -- try not to do too much in pressure situations -- led to Canos improvement with runners in scoring position.I think he is a very good teacher, Girardi said. I think he relates very well to these guys. He has a lot of experiences to really draw from. Hes a first-round pick. Hes been a superstar. Hes changed positions. Hes been in the limelight for a long time, and there have been high expectations for him. There has been controversy. Hes had to deal with it all, and through all of it, he has continued to play at a very high level.Last year, Rodriguez was asked to help Didi Gregorius through a rough adjustment period at shortstop by Joe Espada, the Yankees third-base and infield coach. It was an assignment that Rodriguez, barely a month into his own comeback after a yearlong suspension, tackled with enthusiasm.I think Alex got Didi over the hump, Espada said.In his early days as a Yankee, and to some extent now, the athletically talented Gregorius has been troubled by mental mistakes on the field and on the basepaths. Aside from advising Gregorius to relax, Espada said Rodriguez schooled the now 26-year-old on being more aware of game situations.It helped me a lot, said Gregorius, who has arguably been the Yankees best position player this season. You have to play under control. In the beginning I tried to do too much.Espada said Rodriguez used his encyclopedic knowledge of the American League to help Gregorius position himself for individual hitters. And Espada already uses A-Rod as a de facto assistant coach when it comes to evaluating young players like Rob Refsnyder, who has bounced among three infield positions.I ask him, Do you see something Im not seeing? Espada said. And we kind of share ideas.Rodriguez is qualified for the job, and has enjoyed doing it as part of his duties as a teammate.And there are members of the Yankees baseball hierarchy who believe he can be a valuable spring instructor. He would be less like Reggie and more like Matsui, said a team source who is not a fan of Jacksons skills as a talent evaluator. Matsui is perfect. He has a great eye and great insights, but hes almost too respectful. He never wants to step on the coaches toes. I dont think Alex will have that problem.Yankees insiders believe Rodriguez could really help Jorge Mateo, the organizations top shortstop prospect, and Gleyber Torres, the highly touted prospect acquired in the Aroldis Chapman trade.A member of the Yankees front office said Rodriguez would be a benefit, Even if he just parachutes in for a day or two.Not everyone in the Yankees organization is convinced the plan will work as drawn up in Hal Steinbrenners office.Its great if all this goes as planned, one team insider said. But knowing Alex, this wont go smoothly.Already, there has been controversy this week over Girardis use, or lack thereof, oof Rodriguez in his final four games as a Yankee.ddddddddddddut only one mans opinion truly matters in this affair: that of Steinbrenner.And though Jeters 30,000-square-foot mansion is just a 20-minute drive to the Yankees Tampa complex, it is A-Rod who the owner thinks is the best person to teach players such as Mateo and Torres. There are still lingering resentments between Jeter and the organization from their contentious 2010 contract negotiation, and the former Yankees captain was never much for mentoring younger players. A-Rod, on the other hand, has always relished the role.We talked about Tampa in the conversation; we have two of the top five or six overall prospects, both shortstops, by the way, young kids. I cant think of a better guy than Alex to come in here and really spend time with them than Alex, Steinbrenner said on The Michael Kay Show on ESPN New York 98.7 FM.But what would make one of the greatest players in baseball history, as well as one of the richest, want to do that on a full-time or even semi-full-time basis? Is it gratitude?I want to thank the Steinbrenner family for giving me this opportunity, and for making me part of this team, Rodriguez said at his Yankee Stadium news conference Sunday. And for giving me an opportunity to stay involved and mentor the next generation of Yankees.According to friends of A-Rod, it runs deeper than that.This is definitely not a ceremonial thing, said a person not affiliated with the Yankees who works with Rodriguez. Everyone who knows Alex knows he loves the game and he has an eye for talent. Why would he not want to be around? The Yankees have done this for a lot of their great players and he sees it as an honor to be chosen to do it.A member of the Yankees staff concurred. You heard Alex. He said it was embarrassing and painful to sit on the bench. Does he have more value working with kids like Mateo and Torres, or sitting on the bench and getting four at-bats a week? So why wouldnt he take it? Doesnt it benefit him? Isnt there some value to being wanted at some level by the organization?Girardi is already brainstorming ways to use Rodriguezs expertise. Believe me, I could give Alex projects, the manager said.All this could lead to A-Rods real long-term goal: to be immortalized in Yankees history.People close to Rodriguez believe he would like to have his Yankees No. 13 retired and to have a plaque in Monument Park, which unlike the Hall of Fame has no real entrance exam other than a players importance to the history of the franchise.Currently, the largest monument at Yankee Stadium belongs to George Steinbrenner, a convicted felon (later pardoned) who was twice suspended from baseball. Andy Pettitte, who admitted to HGH use, has a plaque. Whos to say theres no room for Rodriguez out there?Hal Steinbrenner pointedly did not rule out that possibility. And A-Rod has not given up on his hope that someday, perhaps a more permissive crop of Hall of Fame voters will choose to overlook his two admissions of PED use and enshrine him on the basis of his numbers.Several times in the past month, Rodriguez has asked friends and media members if they thought David Ortiz would get into the Hall of Fame. The implication seemed to be that if Ortiz got in -- despite having tested positive for steroids during baseballs survey testing in 2003, according to the New York Times -- there was hope for him too.And a continuing connection to the Yankees further rehabilitates his image and could help build a case for a ceremony both in the Bronx and in Cooperstown. It could possibly lead to another of his aspirations: to one day own a team.Most former players with his history of transgressions against the game would have little chance at any of those things, though the image rehabilitation of Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds says it is hardly impossible.And Rodriguez already has taken major steps toward being welcomed fully back into the MLB family by burying his differences with commissioner Rob Manfred, who prosecuted the Biogenesis case against Rodriguez while a vice president under Bud Selig.Last month, Rodriguez appeared with Manfred and representatives of the MLBPA -- an organization he sued in his flurry of litigation during the Biogenesis mess -- to make a $750,000 donation to help build a youth baseball academy in the Bronx.Manfred declined an interview request for this story but issued the following statement: I tried to treat Alex the same way that we treat all suspended players. Once the suspension is over, we try and make the players return to the game as smooth and successful as possible. Alexs attitude, actions and performance helped make his return a positive one.There is always the possibility that another team will call Rodriguez on Saturday morning, seeking to capitalize on his star power and ability to still hit a baseball out of the ballpark. If so, it might be hard for him to resist, putting the entire advisory position on hold.I do not believe Hal would pull it off the table if he signed to play for another team, a Yankees official said. Hals a good guy. Hes a good person. I dont think it ever got bad between Alex and Hal. Hal tried to remain above all that other stuff.But whats in it for Hal Steinbrenner?The owner already is forced by the collective bargaining agreement to pay Rodriguez every dollar of the approximately $26.5 million he is owed on a contract he did not even negotiate -- by most accounts, it was the brainchild of his brother Hank with the approval of team president Randy Levine -- so why should he keep A-Rod in the organization and pay him an additional sum?Yankees sources say Rodriguez will be paid for his advisory position, as are Jackson and Matsui. And while they will not disclose the amount, it is believed to be a nominal sum.The question is, why bother? In addition to Jackson and Matsui, dont the Yankees have enough former players flitting in and out of spring training as guest instructors, guys such as David Wells and Goose Gossage, and since his retirement, Pettitte?Call it a send-off, off the field, but he is going to be around, he is going to be intimately involved sooner rather than later in shaping the careers of a lot of these young players we are going to be counting on, Steinbrenner said on The Michael Kay Show. Hes been great the last two years. He has done everything we couldve expected from him. The job he has done with guys like Didi and Castro has been marvelous.But theres another piece to the puzzle. In many ways, Hal Steinbrenner has tried to distance himself from The Boss, that legendarily mercurial character who ran the Yankees like a dictator for nearly 40 years.But in other ways, Hal is not unlike George. He is more pragmatic and level-headed than his dad, but he is also competitive. He wants to win, and he seems to enjoy associating himself with players who can help him do that.For 12 years, Alex Rodriguez was one of those players for Hal Steinbrenner, as Reggie was for George in a previous era.Even though George let Reggie walk in 1982, and the two had a period of estrangement, eventually The Boss brought Reggie back as a permanent symbol of a great Yankees team.Maybe Hal is trying to do the same thing with A-Rod, and the real question isnt why are Hal and Alex staying together, but why did anyone think they could be apart? ' ' '