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Sports 1C Thursday January 30, 2014 NFL players driven by chips on their shoulders NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Danny Trevathan won't forget the doubters, no matter how many plays he makes or games he wins. The linebacker will start in the Super Bowl at age 23, the Denver Broncos' leading tackler in just his second season in the league. Yet he can still recite the knocks on his pro potential from before the draft, saying he wants to ''show them up.'' This is the seemingly contradictory mentality of a successful NFL player — a simultaneous superiority and inferiority complex. To Richard Sherman's peers, his televised rant moments after the NFC championship game makes perfect sense. These guys require supreme self-assurance to do their job, but they also need motivation to push themselves through the grind of workouts and the strain of games. ''When you're playing against athletes like this who could really take your head off or really outrun you, if you're not confident, you ain't going to last long in this league,'' said Sherman's counterpart on the Seahawks' defense, linebacker Bobby Wagner. ''At the same time, a lot of players, they've got a story. Somebody has told them they couldn't do something, so that's the chip on their shoulder.'' Sherman, a 2011 fifth-round draft pick, lugs around one of the biggest chips on a unit loaded with them. The cornerback's outburst after making the win-clinching play against the 49ers was partly sparked by something the receiver he was defending, Michael Crabtree, said to him during the offseason, though Sherman wouldn't reveal exactly what infuriated him. Real or perceived, past slights can fuel the kind of passionate play it takes to win in a hard-hitting game. ''You need that edge,'' Seattle offensive tackle Russell Okung said. ''That's what makes us so good. Guys are very resilient. They've come through a lot.'' Trevathan, a sixth-round pick, remembers that scouts deemed him too small. Wagner, a second-rounder, supposedly wasn't tough enough. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie recalls the skepticism he had to overcome as a player from a Football Championship Subdivision school. ''That's always going to stick with me,'' the Broncos cornerback said. And he was a first-round selection. Big contracts, postseason honors, championships — for many players, none of that wipes out their conviction that they have something to prove. ''A lot of people say we're supposed to be all this and that,'' Trevathan said. ''But you've got to play with a burden that this could be taken away from you at any time.'' It's true in all sports, but especially so in the NFL. There are the non-guaranteed contracts, the physical demands of every snap. ''Basketball, you can play a game and walk away with nothing,'' Wagner said. ''Football, I don't know a player — unless you're the quarterback — that walks away not hurting, not bruised. ... People think we're one of the (physically) strongest people in the world. But we have to be mentally strong to take the hits that we take, to give the hits that we take and still come back the next day, do the same thing all over again. ''That takes a lot of you.'' It helps explain the two sides to Sherman. He makes a choke sign toward the San Francisco bench and bellows into the camera about his own dominance. But in Super Bowl week interviews, he is laid-back, friendly, philosophical. For his fellow players, the contrast between their onfield and off-field personas is natural. ''Especially at linebacker, you can't take crap from nobody,'' Trevathan said. ''You've got to be an animal out there. But you've got to be a leader and be smart as well.'' Before games, Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor ''goes to a dark place,'' Sherman said. ''I don't know if I want to go to that place,'' he added. ''But I do go to a place with a lot of animosity.'' Cornerback demands a special sort of personality, which may seem bewildering to those folks watching at home who have never covered a receiver one on one in the final seconds of a one-score affair. ''As a corner in this game, you've got to have that mentality. When that ball goes on top of your head, everybody sees that,'' Rodgers-Cromartie said. ''When you make a play like that at the end of the game, your emotions are high. Ain't no telling what comes out of your mouth.'' Tehama Tracker Today's schedule GIRLS BASKETBALL Enterprise at Red Bluff, 7:30 p.m. BOYS SOCCER University Prep at Corning, 3:15 p.m. Mercy at Biggs, 3:15 p.m. Los Molinos at Colusa, 3:15 p.m. GIRLS SOCCER University Prep at Corning, 3:15 p.m. NBA L.A. Clippers at Golden State, 7:30 p.m. NHL San Jose at Calgary, 6 p.m. Sports on TV BOXING 6 p.m. FS1 — Super welterweights, Eddie Gomez (15-0-0) vs. Daquan Arnett (11-0-0); champion Luis Collazo (34-5-0) vs. Victor Ortiz (29-4-2), for WBA International welterweight title, at New York. GOLF Noon TGC — PGA Tour, Phoenix Open, first round, at Scottsdale, Ariz. 10 p.m. TGC — European PGA Tour, Dubai Desert Classic, second round, at Dubai, United Arab Emirates MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL 4 p.m. ESPN — Cincinnati at Louisville ESPN2 — Florida at Mississippi St. FS1 — Providence at Marquette 5 p.m. ESPNU — Bryant at Robert Morris 6 p.m. ESPN — Purdue at Michigan ESPN2 — UCLA at Oregon 7 p.m. ESPNU — Saint Mary's (Cal) at San Diego NBA BASKETBALL 5 p.m. TNT — Cleveland at New York 7:30 p.m. TNT — L.A. Clippers at Golden State AP photo This undated artist rendering released by the Sacramento Kings shows an artist's rendering of a downtown Sacramento arena they hope to open for the start of the 2016-17 NBA season. Kings release arena renderings SACRAMENTO (AP) — The Sacramento Kings have released the first completed renderings of a downtown arena they hope to open for the start of the 2016-17 season. The renderings released Tuesday came after six months of workshops, open houses, town halls and focus groups. The Kings said a survey soliciting advice from the public yielded more than 20,000 responses. The renderings show a grand atrium entrance with a 50-by-150-foot window that looks into the arena bowl from the street. There's a massive scoreboard. The team said the arena, designed by AECOM, will feature the environmental and technological innovation of the region. The city has approved paying $258 million of the project's estimated $448 million cost. The Kings hope to break ground on the arena this summer. 6-time All-Star Berkman retiring from baseball HOUSTON (AP) — Six-time All-Star Lance Berkman is retiring after 15 seasons in the major leagues. Berkman almost left the game last offseason before signing with the Texas Rangers. He then had another injuryplagued season and was limited to 73 games. The 37-year-old Berkman was Houston's first-round draft pick in 1997 out of Rice, and played 12 seasons for the Astros. He played 1,879 career games, all but 287 for Houston, finishing a .293 career hitter with 366 home runs and 1,234 RBIs. ''Lance was one of the greatest players in Astros history,'' his original team said in a release Wednesday night. The Astros said they hope to honor Berkman during the upcoming season and ''give the fans the chance to recognize his outstanding career.'' He finished the 2010 season with the New York Yankees before two years in St. Louis, where he was part of the 2011 World Series champions. ''Just physically I've gotten to the point where I don't feel like I can compete at a level that I'm used to competing at,'' Berkman told KRIV-TV of Houston. ''I could probably still drag my carcass out there, but I'm not interested in doing that. ... I don't want to hang on just to hang on.'' Berkman said he was excited about retiring. The Rangers declined their $12 million contract option for 2014 last October, which got Berkman a $1 million buyout. He hit .242 with six homers and 34 RBIs for the Rangers. He went on the disabled list July 7 with a left inflammation and a sore right knee, and played only five games after AP photo Houston Astros first baseman Lance Berkman, left, reaches to clubhouse attendant Eddie Gonzales as he walks toward the clubhouse coming back the final month of the season. The six-time All-Star played only 32 games for St. Louis in 2012, when he dealt with a strained left calf and had two operations on his right knee. He hit .301 in 2011 for the Cardinals, who won the World Series that season over Texas. Berkman had said last winter that he had gone into that offseason feeling like he was going to retire then. But he responded to the Rangers, and made $10 million last season. PREP ROUNDUP GIRLS BASKETBALL The Red Bluff Lady Spartans (16-4, 3-0 Sac River League) downed Foothill (8-8) 41-33 on the road Tuesday. Red Bluff's Daisy Brose led the Spartans in scoring with 15 points and tallied five rebounds, four assists and four steals. Payten McKerras finished with seven points and eight rebounds, Allison Winning notched seven points, six rebounds and four steals, and Chelsey Bushnell had four points and six rebounds. The Spartans are on a six-game winning streak and host Enterprise (18-1, 2-0 SRL) at 7:30 p.m. today. The Corning Lady Cardinals (14-6, 3-1 Northern Athletic League) fell to Anderson (16-5), 57-35 on the road Tuesday. The Los Molinos Lady Bulldogs (8-7, 2-4 Five Star League) edged Liberty Christian (8-7), 48-43 at home Tuesday. The Bulldogs' Clarivel Castillo finished with 21 points and 16 rebounds, Katie Morgan scored 13 points and Crystal Sanchez had six. The Mercy Lady Warriors (16-4, 4-2 FSL) were bested by Redding Christian (12-4), 40-38 on the road Tuesday. Mercy's Jessica Curl had 17 points and 21 rebounds, Marissa Starman scored 10 points and Michelle Jaramillo had six. BOYS BASKETBALL The Corning Cardinals (16-3, 4-0 NAL) defeated Anderson (8-13), 49-33 at home Tuesday Corning's Nick Hoag had a team-high 18 points, Chayce Maday tallied 15 points and Michael Shoemaker finished with nine points and 11 rebounds. The Los Molinos Bulldogs (10-9, 2-4 FSL) fell to Liberty Christian (10-9), 86-49 at home Tuesday. The Mercy Warriors (7-13, 1-5 FSL) dropped a game against Redding Christian (15-5), 62-40 on the road Tuesday. GIRLS SOCCER The Corning Lady Cards (7-8-1, 3-3 NAL) fell to Anderson (1-7-2), 2-0 at home Tuesday. Corning's Kaitlyn Huntley had 11 saves at goalkeeper. Courtesy photo by Larry Long Red Bluff High's Chelsey Bushnell attempts a shot against Foothill on the road Tuesday. BOYS SOCCER The Corning Cards (14-0-2, 5-0-1 NAL) blew past Anderson (0-9), 7-0 at home Tuesday. Corning's Eric Figueroa scored three goals while Cristian Loera, Jayve Uriostegui, Mario Campos and Francisco Chavez each scored a goal apiece. Osvaldo Ochoa had six saves at goalkeeper.