RIO DE JANEIRO -- One came from a family filled with top-notch throwers. The other learned from his mom by using any heavy object that felt something like a shot put.Both paths led to the same place -- an Olympic medal.Ryan Crouser captured gold with an Olympic-record throw of 22.52 meters Thursday night to hold off U.S. teammate and favorite Joe Kovacs in the shot put final. Its the first time since 1996 the U.S. has finished 1-2 in the event and gives the Americans 25 medals in track and field in Rio, including nine gold.Youre never happy to get second. Its a bittersweet feeling, said Kovacs, whose top throw was 21.78. But its setting in on this walk down that Im still bringing a silver medal to the U.S., and the gold is coming to Ryan.Its not a stretch to say that throwing runs in Crousers family. His father, Mitch, was an alternate on the 1984 Olympic team in the discus. His uncle, Brian, competed in the javelin at the `88 and `92 Olympics. And then theres his cousin Sam, a javelin thrower who just so happens to be his roommate in Rio.Its definitely a family affair and they were all standing in the stands behind the shot put and were all wearing `Team Crouser uniforms, said Crouser, who is from Gresham, Oregon. It was pretty cool to be able to do that in the Olympics.Then theres Kovacs, who is self-made in the shot put.With a big help from mom, of course.His dad died when he was 7 years old and his mother took on many roles, including his coach. She would go to practice with him, absorb what the coach was telling him and then instruct him on what to do the rest of the week.Had to do whatever she said, Kovacs chuckled. She was the one who told me to keep my elbow up and push the ball flat.In high school, Kovacs threw the shot put as a way to stay in shape for football. He would practice in the parking lot and use whatever was heaviest, including a broken weight set. And when he threw the discus -- an event he dabbled in -- now that was an adventure. He used to skip it through a nearby road.So we had to sneak into other schools to practice, Kovacs said.His mom was in the stands watching him take home a medal.Its an awesome moment that we could share together, said the 27-year-old Kovacs, whos from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. This feels good. We showed it today. ... The depth in the U.S. in the shot put is strong.Throw in the performance of Michelle Carter, who got the ball rolling for the Americans with a gold medal in the shot put on the first night.Its really something special, and if you had written it out as a script, I wouldnt have believed it, the 23-year-old Crouser said.Kovacs was the favorite, especially considering he had four of the worlds top five throws this season.Only, he had a little insider knowledge. As they trained in Chula Vista, California, Crouser was turning in some massive throws. Kovacs knew Crouser was primed for a breakout performance.It played out that way, too. Crouser took the lead on his second attempt and improved it on his fifth with an Olympic record throw. It broke the previous mark of 22.47 set by Ulf Timmermann at the 1988 Seoul Summer Games.Its been a long road, and to get here and have everything to go essentially perfect, words cant describe how I feel right now, Crouser said. Cheap Rangers Jerseys . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. Authentic Custom Rangers Jersey . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. http://www.customnhlrangersjersey.com/ . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. 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(STATS) -- Any deficit in the FCS playoffs was going to trouble unbeaten Sam Houston State considering it had trailed against only one opponent all season -- for a mere 3 minutes, 14 seconds of first-quarter clock.So the Bearkats werent prepared for the kind of lead James Madison built against them Friday night.No team would be.Fourth-seeded James Madison scored early and often while eliminating the fifth-seeded Bearkats 65-7 in the national quarterfinals at Bridgeforth Stadium in Harrisonburg, Virginia.James Madison (12-1), which won the CAA Football title under first-year coach Mike Houston, advances to the FCS semifinals for the third time in program history. It will play next weekend against the winner of Saturdays matchup between No. 8 seed South Dakota State and No. 1 seed North Dakota State. The Dukes previously reached the semis in their 2004 national title season and in 2008.Their point total was the sixth-highest in playoff history and the winning margin was the second-biggest to Montanas 70-7 win over Troy in the 1996 semifinals.While game temperatures were in the mid-20s, and not to the liking of the visitors from Texas, James Madison was red-hot in the teams first-ever meeting, taking a 21-0 lead in just over 11 minutes of action and extending it to 35-0 within the first five minutes of the second quarter.Sam Houston (12-1), top-ranked in the STATS FCS Top 25 to end the regular season, hardly resembled the team that entered the game No. 1 in the FCS in both points and yards per game. Jeremiah Briscoe, who had thrown for 4,459 yards and an FCS single-season record 57 touchdown passes, completed only 13 of 44 pass attempts for a season-low 143 yards, throwing two interceptions (Raven Greene and Curtis Oliver) in the third quarter. The junior also was called for intentional grounding in his end zone, resulting in a safety.We had a great week of practice, there was no doubt in my mind that we were going to come out and play well tonight, Houston said. Defensively, that was as impressive of a performance Ive seen in a long time. It speaks to the improvement of the secondary of the past several months. I thought we clicked in all phases -- offensively, defensively and special teams. Very proud of the kids and coaches.We got beat by a really good football team that I thought played at a very high level, Sam Houston coach K.C. Keeler said. We feed off our offense and our point production has been off the charts.dddddddddddd Jeremiah really struggled. He didnt take a single snap the entire week of practice (because of an elbow injury). We didnt know if he was going to play until game time. His elbow, he injured in last weeks game, so I thought our timing was off. I thought he threw the ball OK, but the timing was off. Its a shame, but we got beat in all three phases.JMU quarterback Bryan Schor threw for 236 of his 251 yards in the first half, with both a touchdown pass and run. Khalid Abdullah rushed for 141 yards and three touchdowns, and Trai Sharp gained 144 yards and two touchdowns on the ground as part of the Dukes 607 total yards.In the first quarter, Abdullah capped an early drive in which he gained 52 rushing yards by scoring from 14 yards out. Schor then completed a 64-yard pass to Domo Taylor to set up his 1-yard touchdown run. After a Sam Houston possession quickly stalled, Rashard Davis weaved his way for a 72-yard punt return for a touchdown -- his fourth of the season.A lot of people may overlook special teams, but its one of the biggest on the field, Davis said. We look at special teams for momentum-boosters and we feed off of them when big plays happen. They play a key role in big games like this. It was the first time Sam Houston hadnt scored in the first quarter since falling to Jacksonville State in last years playoff semifinals. It only got worse when the Dukes special teams delivered again early in the second quarter as Robert Carter Jr. blocked a punt and freshman Bryce Maginley scooped up the ball for a 20-yard touchdown return.On their next drive, Schor hit tight end Jonathan Kloosterman for a 10-yard touchdown pass, making it 35-0 with 10:40 remaining in the second quarter.It was exactly what Sam Houston had been doing to many opponents in the first half of games. The Southland Conference champion had been seeking to reach the national semifinals for the fifth time in six seasons.James Madison hasnt lost to an FCS opponent, only to ACC member North Carolina. The Dukes will host their national semifinal if South Dakota State wins Saturday, otherwise theyll go on the road to face North Dakota State, the five-time reigning FCS champion. ' ' '
