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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots released receiver Chad Ochocinco on Thursday, cutting loose the six-time Pro Bowl selection after one season in which he was more active on Twitter than on the field. "Thoroughly enjoyed the oppurtunity to play for the Patriot organization... fans were ... wicked awesome, I wish all of you the best," he tweeted at about the same time the team was announcing he had been released. "Im healthy n living life, Ill be fine," he wrote on Twitter, where he had changed his job description to "UNEMPLOYED BLACK GUY" and posed a photo of himself sitting on a suitcase at the airport, hitchhiking. Ochocinco, 34, played in 15 games in his only season with the Patriots, starting three and catching 15 passes for 276 yards. He caught one pass in the Super Bowl as New England lost 21-17 to the New York Giants. His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said he is "in the process of gauging interest from potential teams." During the playoffs, Patriots coach Bill Belichick described Ochocinco as a hard worker who "made a very good effort to do everything weve asked him to do on and off the field." Ochocinco said the shift from star receiver to barely contributing role player was a struggle. But it paid off with his first trip to the Super Bowl -- as a player, not as a gadfly asking questions on media day to those actually participating in the game. "Im happy, but the competitive side of me is (angry). Does that make sense?" he said before the team left for Indianapolis. "I handled myself with the utmost professionalism. I busted my (butt), didnt pout. Thats what I do: Give me the rock! But I didnt do what people thought I would do. Even I thought I was going to do it." Drafted in the second round by Cincinnati from Oregon State, Ochocinco spent 10 seasons with the Bengals and reached the Pro Bowl five straight years from 2003-07 and again in 09. He was the first player in NFL history to lead the conference in receiving four consecutive years. But Ochocinco -- who changed his name from Chad Johnson as a nod to his uniform number, 85 -- was perhaps better known for his antics that sometimes annoyed his teammates, coaches -- and even commissioner Roger Goodell, whom he called "Dad." He predicted victories, sent gifts to opposing locker rooms and invited fans to help him think up new end zone antics. His touchdown celebrations -- using a pylon as a golf club, performing CPR on the football, doing a jig, donning a Hall of Fame jacket -- led to repeated fines and an NFL crackdown. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis grew so frustrated that he once called him "Ocho Psycho." Ochocinco also appeared as a contestant on "Dancing With the Stars" and hosted a cable dating show. Under the guise of the online Ochocinco News Network, he attended the Super Bowl as a reporter for two years, asking questions of the teams during media sessions and even grilling Goodell last year on the prospects of avoiding a lockout. Last month, he posted online an open letter to Goodell to support the commissioner in the wake of Junior Seaus suicide, writing "no one is showing any support, I figured I would be the first." In his career, Ochocinco has caught 766 passes for 11,059 yards and 67 touchdowns. Customized Morten Andersen Jersey .And with the NHL now in a lockout, its unlikely hell be getting contract offers any time soon."(The long wait) is something that can be frustrating, because the unrestricted free agent market is a lot smaller this summer because of the lockout," said McArdle, a 25-year-old Toronto native who grew up in Burnaby, B. Customized Torrey Smith Jersey .ca!Kerry,Having seen so many NHL games whilst in NHL cities (especially my Sharks), I have always wanted to know at what point in the game do the calls become more lenient. http://www.officialravensteamsshop.com/autographed-anthony-allen-jersey-wu-88.html .Alabama (11-1) and Georgia (11-1) were both No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, in the poll last week and remained in the same positions following blowout wins against rivalry opponents. The pair will square off next Saturday in Atlanta in the SEC title game in what amounts to a de facto national semifinal. Customized Tyson Alualu Jersey .After an uninspired effort in Game One, the New Jersey Devils were better in the second game of the series, outshooting the Devils 30-21 in regulation, but when the game reached overtime, the Kings took control. Bill Bentley Jersey .Park, of Korea, was eliminated for leaving the blocks early. Although his times were not released, it is likely that the disqualification allowed Cochrane, of Victoria, to qualify for his first 400m freestyle Olympic final.SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Spurs have won four NBA championships, made 32 playoff appearances and captured 18 division titles in their 40-year history.Yet for all their success, they had never opened a season with four straight victories.Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and the Spurs finally did so Monday night, rolling past the Indiana Pacers 101-79 to remain unbeaten."Im surprised were still doing records," Parker said. "It seems like we did everything, but thats another one. Thats great."Its an unprecedented start for San Antonio, albeit one that left players scratching their heads."Its just a stat, not that important in the long-term," Manu Ginobili said. "(But) at this point we are enjoying it. Its curious that a team this successful hasnt started that well before."The Spurs upended the Pacers (2-2) with what has become a familiar formula in recent years -- a little Parker, a little Duncan and a lot off the bench.Gary Neal scored 17 points, DeJuan Blair 14 and Stephen Jackson 12 to pace San Antonios reserves. The Spurs outscored the Pacers bench 57-35."Thats kind of been our motto," Neal said. "With Manu coming off and Stephen Jackson, those guys could be starting on any team in the NBA. We are a deep team. Weve just got to maintain effort when the bench comes in."Duncan added 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Parker finished with six points, seven assists and only one turnover.Former Spurs guard George Hill led Indiana with 15 points. Paul George added 14 points and David West had 10.The Spurs needed a boost from their bench after a sluggish start.Both teams aggressively defended the point early, resulting in a combined 4-for-16 shooting from the field in the first 5 minutes.The Spurs then scored nine straight points to take a 14-9 lead after sharing the ball more. Boris Diaw capped the run with a layup off a bounce pass from Parker with 5 minutes left in the first quarter.Parker later fed a cutting Ginobili, who made aa tip pass to Blair for a layup with 1 second left in the first quarter for a 26-18 lead.dddddddddddd"We moved the ball well," Ginobili said. "Gary was impressive today. But yeah, we changed the tempo of the game. We did good -- much better than the last game."Parker had three of the teams seven assists in the first quarter.Parker sat for 9 minutes in the second period after playing the entire first. With the All-Star point guard on the bench, Jackson and Neal combined for nine points in an 11-0 run that gave the Spurs a 37-18 lead to open the second.Indiana did not surpass 20 points until West dunked off an offensive rebound with 7 minutes left in the first half.West kept the Pacers in contention, scoring all 10 of his points in the second quarter while going 4 for 5 from the field. His 23-foot jumper cut San Antonios lead to 47-38 at halftime.The Spurs maintained a double-digit lead for nearly all of the second half.The Pacers shot just 35 per cent for the game. San Antonio forced 14 turnovers in the second half."Their continuity is evident just watching them play," Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. "Thirteen of their 14 guys were here last year and their core guys have been here for many years winning championships. Its a system they are familiar with. They are a well-oiled machine and they play extremely hard on both sides of the court."NOTES: Indiana forward Danny Granger missed his fourth game with a sore left knee. Granger is out indefinitely. ... Former Indiana Pacers point guard Haywoode Workman was among the game officials. Workman played for the Pacers from 1993-99 and spent parts of four other seasons with three other clubs. His final season in the NBA was 2000 with the Toronto Raptors. ... Hill received a loud ovation during pregame introductions. ... Parker went flying over the first row of courtside seats while chasing down a loose ball in the second half. He landed partially on Ed Whitacre, bending the eyeglass frame of the former CEO of General Mo
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