Yardbarker: Robert Smith

The Cure Albums

Sun, 31 May 2009 23:49:36 -0500

Also known as the albums of Robert Smith's rotating band members

Robert Smith vs. Mike Florio

Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:39:48 -0500

Mike Florio has built himself a nice little internet sports bullsh***ing empire with PFT, a place that has become indispensable to football junkies and scandal lovers alike.? Of course, with great success comes great arrogance, and in the internet universe, nothing reveals the latter more than ...

Your 2008-2009 College Football Bowl Game National Radio Announcing Schedule

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:24:50 -0500

I always get requests to put up the radio teams when the announcing schedule goes up, but it's usually a bit difficult to find every outlet. Thanks to ESPN PR and some University Game Notes, I think we've got just about every bowl game's national radio coverage information. Saturday December 20th EagleBank Bowl: Wake Forest v. Navy (11am)- None New Mexico Bowl: Fresno State v. Colorado State (ESPN Radio, 3pm)- Joe Tessitore, Rod Gilmore St. Petersburg Bowl: Memphis v. South Flori...

PureSport Is Making Waves

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:10:40 -0500

When Mark Eshelman, Director of Business Development for PureSport first emailed me about his company, I was wondering what he wanted from a company who did not represent any swimmers. His company's product, a protein-focused sports drink had a bunch of swimmers as endorsers, including Michael Phelps. Mark reached out to me in advance of the 2008 Olympics, so while Phelps was a big name at the time, he was nowhere near the brand name that he is today. Anyway, Mark sent the product to three of our baseball clients, and they all loved it. Who knew that swimmers and baseball players both enjoy good tasting, healthy products? PureSport took a chance with helping out a young company (Dynasty) and some of its Minor League clients. The least I can do is thank them with a post on the blog. But additionally, I'd like to congratulate them on a recent write-up in the Wall Street Journal. PureSport was not only smart enough to snag Phelps as an endorser of its product prior to the 2008 Olympic Games, but additionally gave him and three of his swimming teammates a five-percent share in the company. Want an athlete to truly care about the product? Give him a stake in it! Sports Authority now carries PureSport products, and a big reason for that is the exposure that the sports drink company gets by being aligned with Phelps. Smart move by a smaller, new company looking to make a name for itself. So which company is going to be the first to jump on an opportunity to have its large logo right in the middle of a guy like Norm Duke or Robert Smith as they bowl in championship after championship on ESPN?

Robert Smith Says No To Replacing Gene Upshaw

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 13:07:47 -0500

Despite being mentioned as a potential candidate, former Vikings running back Robert Smith said he would not push to become the next executive...

Robert Smith Says No To Replacing Gene Upshaw

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 19:04:46 -0500

Despite being mentioned as a potential candidate, former Vikings running back Robert Smith said he would not push to become the next executive...

RIP Gene Upshaw

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 13:41:55 -0500

I'm not one to usually post about deaths, as i try to keep this site light and funny, but i felt i should mention this one. NFL Players Association head Gene Upshaw passed away due to pancreatic cancer. In relevance to two stories i've written before regarding the NFLPA and the upcoming CBA (here and here), Upshaw's passing creates even more questions than answers.

Upshaw was known as a really tough nosed guy who stood up for his players under almost all situations (well, current players, let's not get started on retired players), and had a knack to drive a hard bargain in negotiations with the NFL. He was to have seen the NFLPA through it's current negotiations for a new CBA then retire. Sadly, Upshaw did not make it that far.

The NFLPA is now in an interesting place, as it's greatest and loudest voice has passed. Regardless of who they bring in to take his place (look for former Viking Robert Smith), that person will not have near the experience Upshaw had. Because of this, expect the NFL to attempt to drive a hard bargain in regards to the player revenue pool and a rookie salary structure, which i believe will be the NFL's number 1 issue.

If the NFL does indeed attempt to drive a hard bargain and take advantage of the new NFLPA head (keeping in mind Roger Goodell has done exactly this with regards to issues like player suspensions, drug testing, etc.), expect the NFLPA to scoff at those demands. They are still a strong organization and not willing to bow to the NFL's wishes.

They have two years to come to an agreement, but the passing of Upshaw does nothing to help the NFLPA's stance. Let's hope it doesn't affect their ability to come to an agreement on a new CBA...

At Least Someone in Bristol Likes Us

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 13:10:15 -0500

I always liked Robert Smith, but now I really like what he is saying. The former Ohio State and Minnesota Vikings running does not see the Irish having a repeat 3-9 season. In fact he is thinking around the lines of 8-4. Now that's music to my ears!

ESPN's College Football Kickoff Week Schedule

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 11:46:15 -0500

No announcers have been assigned as of yet, but I thought I would pass along the first full ESPN/ABC College Football schedule. Kickoff Week starts August 25th with College Football Live and our first game is the clash of the titans between Vandy and Miami U. Dari Nowkhah will be studio host in Atlanta with Robert Smith and Trevor Matich and Rece Davis will lead from Los Angeles with Mark May and Lou Holtz. As previously posted, Gameday will originate from Atlanta for the Alabama-Clemson gam...

Kyle Turley Cusses Out Robert Smith During Radio Show

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 04:50:26 -0500

During a discussion of NFL players & disability on Dan Le Batard's radio show, Kyle Turley had a few choice words for Robert Smith - namely, "Well, f--- you, then!"

Dynasty Notes - Part 7

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 20:04:51 -0500

Dynasty Notes will take you through the days when Darren and I (Matthew Vuckovich) did not even know each other, to Dynasty becoming an LLC, to signing our first client, and beyond. If you have not yet read Dynasty Notes - Part 6, go ahead and read it. Enjoy Dynasty Notes - Part 7. With the signing of Mike DeVaney, Dynasty grew its roster to 2 clients and had more to follow. Darren and I continued to update the blog, added on more contributors and worked as hard as we could to keep Dynasty growing. DeVaney was really beginning to like the services that Dynasty had to offer. He was nice enough to get us in contact with his friend and fellow bowler, Bruce Falcon. Bruce soon joined Dynasty as the head of it Bowling Division. He helped Dynasty bring on 2 more clients, Robert Smith and Mike Machuga. Robert smith is a 6-Time PBA National Champion and recently signed a new deal with Elite bowling that turned many heads. Bruce also helped Dynasty sign Mike Machuga. Machuga is nationally known for the famous "Machuga Flop". With the signing of these 2 bowlers, Dynasty's Bowling Division grew to 3 clients, with more on the way. It's great to look back at one small move and see it spiral into a large success. In this industry, each client you take on is going to be a risk. You have to decide what risks you are willing to take and go to work as hard as you can and never look back. We are currently in the process, with the help of Bruce, to market our bowlers in a mega deal. Make sure to follow along as we proceed with these new ventures. Back to the blog. Darren always envisioned that one benefit of founding I Want to be a Sports Agent would be to eventually help his agency sign clients. We accomplished that with the signing of DeVaney, but it didn't stop there. We received a comment from a post on the blog. The source was the father of Barbara Bonic. Barbara is a 15-year-old Serbian tennis prodigy. That caught my eye right away since I am Serbian as well. I knew this was a sign of something good. Darren and I jumped on another opportunity in which we saw great potential. Dynasty soon signed this tennis prodigy and Dynasty's roster grew to 5 clients. At this time, Darren started AccessAthletes along with fellow contributor on the blog, Matthew Allinson. Darren and I have been very happy with the growth of Dynasty, but understand that we need to keep working harder and longer to outdo our competition. We need to manage our time with studying and surviving as first year law students and running Dynasty concurrently. This is no easy task, but it was the risk we were willing to make since day 1 of the game. That is exactly what this industry is, a game. You either play the game or the game will play you. Until you can fully understand this concept, I would not advise you to enter this industry. As I have said in the past, this business is not for everyone. But if you really want to jump in and hit the ground running, make sure to do your research and bring you're A-game or you will not survive in these waters. Barbara was a great addition to Dynasty's family. She is our youngest client and we admire her for having great success at such a young age. Next year, when she is 16 years old, she will be playing in all 18 and under professional tournaments. We are very excited for what the future holds for her career. We have been in contact with many companies as we try to land her some nice sponsorship and endorsement deals. Please continue to follow Barbara's progress as we help her reach her goals and bring Dynasty to the top; you will not be disappointed! -Matthew Vuckovich Thank you for reading this edition of Dynasty Notes. Make sure to be on the lookout for Dynasty Notes - Part 8.

55th Most Influential Blog and Rising Sports Agent

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:03:09 -0500

An interview with one of my agents: 55th Most Influential Blog and Rising Sports Agent Matt Vuckovich is the cofounder of Dynasty Athlete Representation and a contributer to Sports Agent Blog. He attends law school at the Southern California Institute of Law. Usually he is interviewing other agents for the Sports Agent Blog, but last week, he took the other side of the microphone in the JSB exclusive. Mitchell Blatt: Growing up, did you want to be an agent as a teen? Matt Vuckovich: Yes. Growing up I played hockey. My best friend now plays for the Chicago Blackhawks. I attended the NHL Draft with him. Since then, I've had a chance to talk with his agents and really get to know the business. Sports was an industry that I always wanted to get involved with, because I've always been involved with sports. Being a sports agent, it was just an industry that really caught my eye, because they work behind the scenes. Most people don't really understand all the work that is involved in being an agent. MB: Is the job how you envisioned it as a teen? MV: I don't know about that. The biggest reality check is how much work it involves. Forming our own agency [with Sports Agent Blog owner, Darren Heitner], Dynasty Athlete Representation, we're on the grind, day and night, really trying to get the business running. It always takes a lot of effort, because there are other people trying to take the same players you're going after. MB: How do you find the time to run the agency and finish law school? MV: I'm actually going to law school part time, and my partner Darren Heitner is going to law school full time at the University of Florida. What I do, is every morning, from about six am to four pm, I do business, whether it's making phone calls, putting together marketing packages, checking on clients that we already have? Then at night, I go to class. Darren goes to school full time, so he has school from eight to five. By the time I'm heading to class, he's coming back and he gets working. MB: Why did you start your own agency instead of joining an existing agency? MV: I think it comes down to the individual that I am and the individual that Darren is. I think it takes someone to really put everything out on the line, and if it happens, great, but if it doesn't, you need to be able to deal with your own actions. I'm a pretty independent person, and I always wanted to do my own thing. To be honest, though, I didn't know that I was going to form my own agency. But, the fact that Darren and I both met did it. We realized that in this industry, you really have to make a name for yourself to set you apart. We decided, we're both young now, so lets give it a run and see what we can do. MB: Do you know of any other agents who got started as young as you? MV: I believe that Drew Rosenhaus did. He was a second or third year law student at Duke. Other than that, I don't know. Leigh Steinberg. That's all I can think of. MB: You became the first agency to sign PBA bowlers this year. Why didn't bowlers have agents before? MV: I think that the bowling industry as a whole hasn't really been too familiarized with agents. It wasn't until our first client, Mike DeVaney, commented on the blog asking if anyone was interested in represtenting a bowler? I do believe he tried to contact other agencies as well, but they didn't want him because they were already established and didn't want to get involved with bowling. Darren and I saw this as a great opportunity to really get Dynasty on the map. We now have two other bowlers, Robert Smith and Mike Machuga, and we're in talks with more. But, bowling is still an industry that isn't too agent friendly. Most of the companies that we do call looking for marketing opportunities say that they don't deal with agents, and they want to talk to the athletes directly. MB: Now, you also signed a baseball player, Kyle Monroe-Dison. Can you give a brief biography? MV: Kyle pitched in junior college then he played one year in the independent leagues, but he hurt his arm, and he's had Tommy John surgery. He is just now doing workouts for some teams. He's real great. He does a blog for Yardbarker. He's trying to recruit other baseball players to join Dynasty. Dynasty's clientele also includes Barbara Bonic, a 15-year-old Serbian tennis star.

Dynasty: Pro Bowler Robert Smith Signs Landmark Deal With Elite

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 19:30:35 -0500

For Immediate Release Contact: Darren Heitner dheitner@dynastyreps.com Matthew Vuckovich mvuckovich@dynastyreps.com Pro Bowler Robert Smith Signs Landmark Deal With Elite Bowling International Bay City, Mich. - Oct. 8, 2007, Robert Smith is entering his 10th year on the Professional Bowling Association Tour with a new sponsor: Elite Bowling International. Formerly with Storm Bowling, Robert has signed an industry breakthrough, one year deal with Elite. Smith is coming off of a year where he was limited to bowling in only four PBA Tour events due to a hip and lower back injury. He looks to come back from that injury with newfound strength, and Elite has shown faith in Smith through its investment. Smith currently has $688,246 in PBA winnings, six career Denny's PBA Tour titles and nine PBA regional crowns. His national titles include winning the 2000 U.S. Open Championship and 2002 Japan Cup Championship. The Elite deal is Smith's first endorsement since signing with the Hollywood, Fla. based full service sports agency, Dynasty Athlete Representation, LLC. Dynasty's bowling division is now head up by Bruce Falcon and includes Smith and Mike DeVaney as current clients. Falcon recently stated, "I am looking forward to working with Dynasty to take professional bowling to the next level. Robert is also very excited to be one of the few players to sign with a full service sports agency. The opportunities are endless, and together, we will build credibility for the game and its athletes." Dynasty Athlete Representation, LLC is a full service sports agency with services that include contract negotiations, marketing, endorsements, charity, philanthropy and retirement planning for its clients. http://www.dynastyreps.com ###