as looking forward to saying thanks at HOF. Tomorrow not

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Texas A&M is getting used to running its offense through its big men, and the Aggies so far are digging the results. Center Tyler Davis scored 17 points and guard D.J. Hogg added 12 as Texas A&M overwhelmed American for a 76-53 victory on Monday night in Reed Arena.For the second consecutive game against an undersized opponent, the Aggies (2-0) dominated inside, in outscoring the Eagles 44-22 in the paint.Our guys bought in defensively, and our length and our size in the paint gave them problems, A&M coach Billy Kennedy said. We have good size at every position.Hogg added a game-high nine rebounds, and A&M freshman forward Robert Williams added 10 points and two blocks in only his second game. Williams (6-9, 237) now has seven blocks on the season.Delante Jones led American (2-0) with 18 points and Saeed Nelson followed with 12. The Aggies made 6 of 14 3-pointers (42.9 percent), including a combined 4 of 5 by Hogg and freshman Eric Vila.The Aggies led 20-15 a little more than midway through the first half when they decided, thanks in large part to the 6-10 Davis and 6-9 Hogg, to put away the Eagles by the break. Davis and Hogg combined to make 9 of 13 field goals in the first half in staking A&M to a 41-20 lead.Theyre really big and talented and good at what they do, American coach Mike Brennan said of the Aggies. We knew it was going to be a huge challenge. Their perimeter guys are just as good as their big men -- they can make shots and play on the perimeter -- but their focus is getting the ball inside.The Aggies had dominated Northwestern State 42-8 in points in the paint in their Friday opener, a 72-44 victory over the Demons, when Davis also led the way with a game-high 16 points and 10 rebounds.Its beautiful, Hogg said of running the offense through the big men, particularly Davis, a preseason first-team All-SEC selection by the coaches. Tyler takes a lot of pressure off of us, because he needs a double team to be stopped. Otherwise its bucket after bucket.BIG PICTUREThe Aggies were wary of American only losing by six points (62-56) at Maryland on Friday, so they used their lopsided size advantage early and often to overwhelm the Eagles. A&M intends to work inside-out on offense all season, with center Tyler Davis the focal point.The Eagles are hoping a couple of rugged road losses to start the season will help when they need it most, and when the competition isnt quite as tough: in Patriot League action.HIGHLIGHT REEL:A&M freshman forward Robert Williams sailed above the rim for an alley-oop slam dunk on a pass from D.J. Hogg to make the score 62-32 in the second half. Williams already owns a collection of highlights in only two games for A&M.STAT OF THE NIGHT: Because of the 19-point lead at halftime, A&M was able to get nine players at least 14 minutes each in the game, and the Aggies reserves outscored their counterparts 31-6.HE SAID IT: The bigs make it easier on us. They give us open shots, because people have to dig in down low. A&M guard D.J. HoggTHEY SANG IT: A&M students serenaded sophomore guard Admon Gilder with a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday on the night of his 21st. Their timing was questionable, considering he was about to shoot a free throw. He made it.HE SAID IT PART TWO: I was about to say, `Quiet down, so he can focus. Hogg, chuckling, on Gilder preparing to shoot the free throw under the pressure of happy birthday to you.UP NEXTThe Aggies schedule toughens on Friday, when they play host to Southern California and try and stay undefeated on the early season.The Eagles will try and earn their first win of the season on Thursday at Akron after tough losses at Maryland and A&M to start the season. Nike Sb Shoes For Sale . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. Nike Sb Sale . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. http://www.cheapwholesalenikesb.com/ .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Nike Sb Shoes Near Me . -- Yogi Ferrell orchestrates pretty much everything in Indianas offence. Cheap Nike Dunk High . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. MINNEAPOLIS -- Dennis Green, the trailblazing coach who led a Minnesota Vikings renaissance in the 1990s before a less successful run with the Arizona Cardinals, has died. He was 67.Greens family posted a message Friday on the Cardinals website announcing the death.His family was by his side and he fought hard, the statement said. It did not disclose other details, though the Cardinals said Green had died of a heart attack.Green was the first black head coach in Big Ten history when he took over at Northwestern in 1981 and was just the third black head coach in the NFL when the Vikings hired him in 1992. Through it all, Green worked hard to provide opportunities for minorities on his coaching staffs and was beloved by his players for the loyalty he showed them.He was one of the forerunners, standard bearers from an African-American standpoint, Vikings COO Kevin Warren said. He was there early and won a lot of football games. He not only got in that position as a head coach, he then hired people and gave them opportunities.Green spent 10 seasons in Minnesota, leading the Vikings to eight playoff appearances and two NFC championship games. He had only one losing season and compiled an overall record of 97-62, a mark second only to Bud Grant in franchise history. That included a 15-1 regular season in 1998 spearheaded by a record-setting offense.They were pretty good when he was here, current Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. Im just trying to get close to him.Green went out on a limb in the draft before that season, taking Randy Moss at No. 21 after the super-talented receiver fell due to character concerns. Moss was a sensation from the start, teaming with Cris Carter, Jake Reed, Randall Cunningham and Robert Smith to give the Vikings the most dynamic and explosive offense the league had ever seen. The Vikings scored a record 556 points that season, a mark that stood until New England broke it in 2007.But the Vikings were upset at home by the Atlanta Falcons that season and also were embarrassed by the New York Giants 41-0 in their other trip to the NFC title game after the 2000 season.Green went 4-8 in the postseason, one of the reasons he was fired by Minnesota late in the 2001 season.Denny made his mark in ways far beyond being an outstanding football coach, the Vikings said. He mentored countless players and served as a father figure for the men he coached. Denny founded the Vikings Community Tuesday Program, a critical initiative that is now implemented across the entire NFL. He took great pride in helping assistant coaches advance their careers. His tenure as one of the first African American head coaches in both college and the NFL was also transformative. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Green family.Smith tweeted: Rest in peace Denny. I lost my mother in April, I feel like I just lost father.Greens leadership was never needed more than during training camp in 2001 when offensive tackkle Korey Stringer collapsed and died from heat illness, but his tenure in Minnesota also was marked by controversy.ddddddddddddHe penned a book in 1997 entitled No Room for Crybabies in which he threatened to sue the ownership group if he didnt obtain an ownership stake. And at the end of the 2001 season, he was ousted with one game left in the season after losing a power struggle with owner Red McCombs.Green finished his three years in Arizona with a 16-32 record. Perhaps his biggest accomplishment with the Cardinals was overseeing the drafting of Larry Fitzgerald as the No. 3 overall pick in 2004. Fitzgerald was a ball boy for Greens Vikings.Of course, many remember Greens final season in Arizona in 2006 for a Monday night loss to Chicago, when the Bears returned two late fumbles and a punt for touchdowns to rally from a 20-point deficit. Afterward, in one of the more memorable postgame rants by an NFL coach, Green pounded the podium and yelled, The Bears are who we thought they were! afterward, a line that would be replayed endlessly over the years.Green was well known for his Denny-isms, unique phrases like Plan your work and work your plan, which he would often say during practice.I still use that `Denny-ism today, Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said. Coach Green is going to be missed dearly by everyone that was lucky enough to know him.Green was also an avid drummer, and Moss said on ESPNs NFL Live that we had a team and one thing he taught us was to play to one beat. His legacy will live on.Born Feb. 17, 1949, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Green once said he was struck by watching early Big Ten football games and seeing both Minnesota and Iowa putting together successful seasons behind black quarterbacks. Green enrolled at Iowa, too, and played running back for the Hawkeyes from 1968-70. He played for the BC Lions in Canada in 1971 before returning to coach in college, beginning at Dayton in 1973 and gradually climbing to bigger programs. Green was also a head coach at Stanford and served as an assistant to Bill Walsh on the dominant 49ers teams of the 1980s.All of us at the Cardinals are incredibly saddened by the news of Dennis Greens passing, Cardinals President Michael Bidwell said. Coach Green will rightly be remembered as a true innovator, leader and pioneer among football coaches. We express our deepest sympathy to his family and his many friends.The family asked that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to the Boys and Girls Club of San Diego.He did so much for me, tweeted former coach Tony Dungy, who was a defensive coordinator under Green with the Vikings. Was looking forward to saying thanks at HOF. Tomorrow not promised.---Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---AP Sports Writer Bob Baum in Phoenix contributed to this report.