Word to the Wise, FedEx Cup Should Bag Lavish Prize

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Paul CaseyThe FedEx Cup will be decided this weekend. My money's on Dale Earnhardt Jr.

What's that? Junior didn't make the 36-hole cut in the Sprint Cup?

Pardon my ignorance. It's hard to keep all those cups straight this time of year. Even a cup expert like Tiger Woods would have a hard time. FedEx is the one that has tried to buy our affection with a grand prize worthy of blaring Publisher's Clearinghouse trumpets:

$10 million!

If the FedEx Cup really wants to win hearts and minds, it needs to do something crazy. Give away the money.

Give it charity, give it to a lucky fan plucked out of the gallery, rent a helicopter and dump 10 million $1 bills over an Atlanta housing project. Anything would be better than presenting it to a golfer who already owns a Lear jet.

It's easy for me to be noble and give away somebody else's money. I should just run for Congress, only I'm not playing the Class Envy card.

 

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Video: David Beckham Angrily Confronts Heckler as Lawyers File Suit

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David Beckham ScandalThe heat from the David Beckham prostitution scandal that broke last week clearly has gotten to the Los Angeles Galaxy star and his wife, Victoria, as the player was seen angrily confronting a heckler while leaving the field following Friday's loss to New York.

Meanwhile, friends of the former Spice Girl have said she is "going through bouts of rage and feelings of humiliation" and is considering leaving the U.S.

But the Beckhams can bring the heat as well. They have filed a multi-million libel suit against former call girl Irma Nici and the editor and publisher of In Touch magazine, which ran a cover story on her claims that she slept with Beckham in 2007. The magazine is published by a German company, Bauer Media.

 

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Hans, Not Henry, May Be the Key to Red Bulls' Resurgence

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The New York Red Bulls, who traveled across the country without their best player and easily defeated Major League Soccer's top team last Friday, are a championship contender thanks to the summer arrival of designated players Thierry Henry (who missed the 2-0 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy) and Rafa Márquez.

But they are winners thanks to Hans Backe.

For years, we all wondered what it would take to turn the Red Bulls into a real soccer team. The Austrian energy drink company took over in 2006 and got to work on building the new stadium, but things didn't improve on the field. The surprising run to the 2008 MLS Cup Final was erased by last year's five-win debacle, and in January Red Bull named Backe as the franchise's 12th coach in 15 seasons.

Hans Backe? I had to Google him, too.

 

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The Playoff Picture: Focus on NL Races

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Champagne celebrations erupted in three more clubhouses Tuesday night as the Reds, Rays and Yankees secured their trips to the playoffs.

That means six of the eight playoff teams are locked in and only two races for a postseason berth remain -- the NL West and NL wild card. Three teams are contesting those two spots, and the focus will be on the Giants, Padres and Braves the next few days.

As a side note, the Rays and Yankees also will continue jockeying for position in the AL, with one taking the division title and the other the wild card. If the playoffs started today, the Rays would host the Rangers and the Yankees would visit the Twins in the first round.

Here's a look at how things stand entering play Wednesday:

 

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Peyton Hillis Among Browns Bright Spots in Winless September

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It's no surprise to see that the Browns are last in the AFC North, but to go actually winless is another story.

One thing that was expected from the Browns was to stay competitive They don't have the most talented group in the world, but they work well with what they have. Each of the three games played by Cleveland were decided in the fourth quarter and they've held their opponents to a total of three points in the third quarter -- from the Kansas City Chiefs via field goal.

The Browns' game plan is simply: run the ball, play smart defensively and roll the dice in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, they've run out of gas each game.

The biggest shocks for the Browns are running back Peyton Hillis and how the young defensive unit has performed. The defense doesn't have whopping stats, but they play great ball until the last minutes of the fourth quarter, which has made the difference between an 0-3 team and a 3-0 team.

And Hillis is a surprising ninth in the league in rushing at 220 yards, averaging 5.6 yards per carry (not to mention that 144 of those yards came from stream rolling over a proven Ravens' defense in Week 3). Until Week 3, however, the Browns didn't score a single point.

Quarterback Jake Delhomme injured his ankle in the season-opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and backup Seneca Wallace has stepped in to perform rather nicely. In October, the Browns should feed off the positive success they had in Week 3 against the Ravens, but the offense must produce in the second half and the defense needs to settled down late in the fourth quarter to help close the game.

 

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Latest Shame Just Another CONCACAF Embarrassment

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We interrupt your regularly scheduled CONCACAF Champions League action for yet another regularly scheduled CONCACAF embarrassment.

It seems that Jack Warner, the confederation president who's part neighborhood gangster and part outlandish James Bond villain, is refusing to pay promised bonuses to the Trinidad and Tobago players who qualified for the 2006 World Cup (Warner negotiated the bonuses and is a high-ranking member of the country's parliament). And Warner and his yes-men at the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation are refusing to pay despite repeated rulings requiring them to do so.

According to this story from the Trinidad and Tobago Express and this piece from The Observer (London), both the international Sport Dispute Resolution Panel and the Port of Spain High Court have ruled that the TTFF owes more than $3 million in promised bonuses and legal costs to at least 13 Soca Warriors. Perhaps even more troubling for Warner, the TTFF has been told it must open its books to an independent auditor.

 

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Versus Readies for NHL Season; Contract Negotiations Set to Begin

by A.J. Perez

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Versus will debut a TV spot that promotes its opening-night telecasts (below) Monday night, a commercial similar to what executives at the cable network hope they can show fans next season and beyond.

The U.S. TV rights deals for Versus and the league's broadcast partner, NBC, expire at season's end. The channel formerly known as the Outdoor Life Network had remarkable ratings last season, including a record 3.6 million viewers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Philadelphia Flyers and Chicago Blackhawks in June.

"We will have discussions in the not-so-distant future," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said last week. "We will deal with the next contracts in the ordinary course."

Bettman, however, said he wouldn't discuss whether the NHL would talk to ESPN or other outlets as part of seeking a new TV deal. Bettman added that the league is in regular dialogue with its TV partners.

"There is a lot of hype and focus on it," Bettman said. "We are not at the stage viewing it with the same level of scrutiny as it's been getting. That's not to say it's not important."

Versus will kick off the season by televising Flyers at the Pittsburgh Penguins' new arena, the CONSOL Energy Center, on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. ET; the Blackhawks at Colordao Avalanche game follows.

 

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Justin Bieber's 3-D Movie Due February 11

Director Jon Chu says it won't be a 'typical concert film.'
By Kara Warner


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Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage

All right, Beliebers: We know you're still digesting Justin Bieber's VMA performance, Best New Artist win and Canadian reunion with Drake on the white carpet, but now we have some more info about your favorite teen heartthrob. His 3-D concert movie is due February 11.

Deadline first reported the big news from Paramount on Wednesday (September 15), but MTV News has been following the film's development since its inception. Director Jon Chu told us the film is for Bieber's fans and that it won't be just a typical concert movie.

"[It's] a movie for his fans, a movie for people who don't know him, and we're gonna tell the underdog story of where he came from," the "Step Up 3D" director explained. "Because it's a really fascinating story and it has a lot to do with our sort of digital lifestyle now. He was able to do what corporations try to do now when they use YouTube and they don't even know what to do with it yet. It's a pretty cool story for our time."

Chu said his goal is to make the film a blend of concert/biopic/documentary. "There's not going to be acted-out scenes, and I can't talk about the rest. It's not your typical concert film and it's not going to be a biopic ... but it is about his life. I think it's more of a documentary. We're going to figure it out as we go," he said. As for how much of it will be in 3-D, he said, "You'll have to see it. We're figuring that out now."

The Biebs has a lot on his plate. In addition to the film, he is working on his new video for "U Smile," his memoir hits bookstores in October, he'll appear on "CSI" next week and is also said to be involved with Will Smith's upcoming top-secret movie.

Are you counting down the days until February 11? Let us know in the comments below!

For young Hollywood news, fashion and "Twilight" updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com.

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