With the struggling economy in mind, the Thrashers have taken a particularly community-minded approach recently and Ilya Kovalchuk joined the cause last Wednesday when he hosted Kovy’s Krew. Using Jillian’s bar, Kovalchuk hosted a group of children from the Lawrenceville Boys and Girls Club, North Atlanta Miracle League, Agape Community Center and Foster Children’s Foundation. As part of the Kovy’s Krew program, Kovalchuk joined the kids in party and games and helped welcome mascot Thrash to the event. Kovy’s Krew offers children living with cancer and those from disadvantaged circumstances the opportunity to visit Jillian’s for an afternoon of arcade games, food and bowling with the Thrashers forward.
Keeping up with the giving-back theme, the Hawks and Thrashers announced a new promotion last week, offering fans a cheap form of entertainment prior to games. Before each Hawks and Thrashers game, fans will have the opportunity to take advantage of special $1 pregame prices on hot dogs, popcorn and fountain drinks. For the Hawks, the promotion will run through Tuesday, Feb. 10, while Wednesday, Feb. 11 will be the last day the Thrashers run the special.
While the loss of John Smoltz monopolized last week’s headlines, the Braves took yet another step forward in rebuilding their pitching staff. With relative silence, the team has added three valuable pieces to next year’s starting rotation, most recently signing Derek Lowe. Lowe, 35, had a 3.24 ERA last year and a 14-11 record in 34 starts. These are things you all probably already know. What you may not have learned yet, though, is that Lowe is genuinely happy to be here: “We had a tremendous meeting and I really got to know everybody in this organization, from pretty much every Minor League kid to every member of the Major League staff and what their goals were,” Lowe said of his talk with the Braves. “I left here feeling very comfortable about this being a place that I’d love to play.” Especially during an offseason where it seems the team has been passed over by one big name after another, it’s nice to finally see a quality player truly happy to come here.
LANDERS AT THE TOP
Andy Landers, the head coach of Georgia’s women’s basketball team, had a memorable Thursday last week. Not only did the coach lead his Lady Bulldogs to a dominant 74-28 victory over Savannah State, the win represented the accomplished coach’s 800th career victory at the college ranks. Landers won 718 of those games in his 30 years at Georgia, with his first 82 coming in the 1970s during his tenure at Roane State Community College. Landers has an impressive career record of 800-253 and is now one of only five coaches with 800 wins, joining North Carolina’s Sylvia Hatchell, Tennessee’s Pat Summitt, Rutgers’ C. Vivian Stringer and Jody Conradt, who retired from Texas in March of 2007.
The rise of the local Chick-fil-A Bowl over the last few seasons has been impressive and noteworthy. And, as a result of its great run, Gary Stokan, the 11-year president of the Bowl, was elevated last week to president and chief executive officer of the 41-year-old event. During Stokan’s tenure, the Chick-fil-A Bowl has been sold out every single year and is now the highest-attended non-BCS bowl game in the entire country. With Stokan’s promotion, David Epps, a 14-year veteran and the bowl’s former vice president of marketing and sales, has been promoted to chief operating officer.
The name Rico Brogna rings loud for Braves fans, as the former first baseman spent the 2001 baseball season, his last, suiting up for the hometown Bravos. Brogna’s name, however, will soon take on a whole new meaning, as the 38-year-old distanced himself from his former sport when he was hired last week as an assistant football coach at Wesleyan University. Believe it or not, this will actually be Brogna’s second stint with the Cardinals, where he coached wide receivers in 2004. Most recently, Rico served as a scout for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Janovitz can be reached at sjanovitz@scoreatl.com.
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