Funkerstation » yer?Mike Napoli as a free agent last winter. You will l

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- James Onwualu has been through a lot of change in his four years at Notre Dame, going from being a blocking wide receiver starting four games as a freshman to a defensive stalwart who helped turn around a defense that was foundering to start the season.Coach Brian Kelly credits the 6-foot-1, 232-pound linebacker from St. Paul, Minnesota, and defensive end Isaac Rochell with anchoring the unit when coordinator Brian VanGorder was fired after a 1/3 start and lauds them for providing the leadership needed when the Irish (4-6) started depending more on freshmen.Those two guys in particular, Rochell and Onwualu were unbelievable, Kelly said. It was, I think, crucial when we made a change defensively, played all those freshmen, we needed guys to lead by example. We didnt need a guy yelling and screaming. And those two guys live by example.It was a challenge for Onwualu to stay positive when VanGorder was fired because the coach had helped him so much when he switched from offense, moving at first to safety and then to linebacker.Youre pretty much failing every single day. Like, Im coming in, never backpedaled in my life really, didnt know much about defense, maybe just normal coverages, but youre pretty much coming in and failing every single day, he said. So to have somebody like coach VanGorder who is working you through that process and continuing to give you confidence, and say youre learning this today and youve improved here, but also at the same time pushing you.Onwualu made the change after making two catches as a freshman. He saw other freshmen receivers such as Will Fuller and Corey Robinson with so much more talent, and he was excelling making tackles on special teams. He figures if he stayed at receiver he might have finished with 10 catches this season. Instead, hes been a three-year starter on defense and is third in tackles this season with 60 heading into his final game Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium against Virginia Tech (7-3). Hes also second on the team with five pass break-ups and has two sacks.I feel so much more comfortable on the defensive side. It kind of fits my mentality a little bit more, he said.Rochell believes Onwualu would be good at whatever he tries.Hes always going to be working hard, he said. If he was picking up trash from the Gug hed be great at it. It doesnt matter if hes crunching numbers in accounting, hes going to be great at it.Onwualu takes pride in that the defense has consistently improved and has a chance to show how good it is in its final two games against Virginia Tech and No. 15 USC (7-3).We knew that we were just working toward something and working toward being the best team that we could be, and I think its just starting to kind of shape around, he said. Guys are starting to realize how talented we can really be. Curtis Martin Jersey . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. Cheap Jets Jerseys . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. http://www.cheapnewyorkjetsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-joe-namath-jersey . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. Wesley Walker Jersey . The Australian is competing in his final season in Formula One and still looking for his first win this year. He will look to end Vettels run of six straight race wins on Sunday. Webber, who is fifth in the championship, earned his second pole from the past three races and 13th of his career. Mark Gastineau Jersey . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times. The Boston Red Sox versus the Cleveland Indians?could have been a fabulous series, one featuring the best starting pitching in the American League against the best offense in the major leagues, with the whole irresistible force/immovable object thing. Instead, its going to be a really good series featuring the two best offenses in the league, two great, young shortstops, a couple Cy Young candidates, a lot more of David Ortiz and a whole lot more of Tito Francona.Here are five questions.How good is the Boston offense?The Red Sox scored the most runs in the major leagues, 33 more than the mile-high Rockies and 101 more than the Indians, who were second in the AL. The Blue Jays scored 127 more runs than the next-best team in the AL last year, but 101 is still a really big gap. Bostons OPS was .810, which was by far the highest in the league and 66 points higher than the league average. The Red Sox, for the second time in their history (1977 was the other season), had three players (Ortiz, Mookie Betts and Hanley Ramirez) with 30 homers or more, and the same three drove in more than 110 runs, which made this the first season the Red Sox have had three 30-100 guys. But its more than that. Bostons offense is relentless. It can beat you so many ways: with power, speed and athleticism. There is danger from top to bottom, and in the middle of the order is Ortiz, who hit .458 with four home runs in six games against the Indians this year.What shape is Clevelands starting rotation in? Sadly, it is damaged. Carlos Carrasco, who has great stuff, will miss the postseason after he broke his right pinky when he was hit by a line drive. Danny Salazar, whom Indians closer Cody Allen calls the most gifted pitcher Ive ever been around, likely will miss this series because of a forearm injury. Ace Corey Kluber, a Cy Young candidate, suffered a mild quad strain on Sept. 26 and hasnt pitched since. He is scheduled to start Game 2. That leaves Trevor Bauer, who can be really good and can be erratic too, to start Game 1 in Cleveland. Josh Tomlin, who had a terrific stretch early but struggled some in the second half (5.59 ERA after the All-Star break), will start Game 3 in Boston. Meanwhile, the Boston rotation is about as good as it has been all year. Cy Young candidate?Rick Porcello, David Price and?Clay Buchholz?make a formidable first three.How good is Clevelands offense?It scored the second-most runs in the league -- quite a feat, given that outfielder Michael Brantley missedd nearly the entire season because of a shoulder injury.dddddddddddd Francona did a marvelous job mixing and matching in the outfield to find production. A good portion of the teams offense unexpectedly came from current third baseman Jose Ramirez, who, Francona said at midseason, saved us this year. The Indians have been led lately by their offense, which is extremely versatile. The No. 6 spot in the order, for instance, produced 92 RBIs, and the No. 8 spot produced 19 homers. Most teams have a leadoff guy and a No. 5 hitter;?Carlos Santana does both. He hit 19 homers out of the leadoff spot and 12 from the No. 5 hole, joining Jose Cruz Jr. in 2001 as the only players to hit at least 10 homers from both those spots in the same season. Thats the Indians. They attack from all angles. Thats why they won 94 games and why they never lost more than three in a row.Is there concern about Boston closer Craig Kimbrel?Just when the Boston bullpen got really good -- roughly when Koji Uehara came off the disabled list and started throwing that splitter for strikes and blowing hitters away at 89 mph -- Kimbrel started to labor. He walked six of the final 13 batters he faced in the regular season. He looked like he had no confidence, one scout said. Thats very unlike him. In the last 17 batters he faced, Kimbrel gave up six earned runs. His velocity is good, but the Red Sox will need his faith and belief to return if they are to win the series. As for the Indians, their bullpen is better than it has been all season, in part because of the Andrew Miller element. Wherever he is needed most, thats where he will pitch.How familiar are these two teams? Very familiar. Indians manager Tito Francona managed the Red Sox to two World Series titles. He managed, among others, David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia, who remain his close friends. One of Franconas best friends is his former pitching coach in Boston, John Farrell, who, of course, is the Red Sox manager. Thanks to a strong recommendation from Pedroia to Francona in the offseason, the Indians signed former Red Sox player?Mike Napoli as a free agent last winter. You will love hi