FCD 1 vs. LA Galaxy 5

UPDATE: As always, recap, boxscore, highlights, etc on mlsnet.com...we understand and expect that some fans will be disappointed today, believe us, we are. That being said, please use caution when posting comments on this blog post.



Also, click here for Pablo's comments in Spanish...

Eric talks to Kenny...

A good practice session today...it appears the coaches are looking into a couple of different options with regards to the lineup...with the LA Galaxy coming to town, we had a guest reporter helping our FCD TV crew today...

Duilio also talks about the game...

Cooper in U.S. Soccer Player Pool...

True FCD fans know what a hard and honest worker Kenny Cooper is...and, you've seen his work pay off in the positive contributions he's made and continues to make to the team, and it's not just with the goals he's scored early this season...

Tonight, U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley named Cooper to the 33-man player pool that will be used to select rosters for the upcoming trio of blockbuster friendlies against England, Spain and Argentina.

Congrats to Kenny for making it this far...we'll be sure to keep you informed if he gets called in for any of the games.

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Cooper in his second game with the U.S. MNT in March 2007 at Pizza Hut Park versus Guatemala. Photo: Rick Yeatts

Abe Thompson on SW Kia SportsTalk Tonight

Catch Abe Thompson tonight on Southwest Kia SportsTalk with Josh Roe on KFWD Channel 52 (channel 14 on Time Warner in Frisco). The show airs at 6:30 p.m. but if you're unable to catch it live, no worries, the show will replay later tonight at 11:30 p.m. and the interview will be posted on the show's video site in the next few days.

Send your comments / questions sportstalk@belo.com or if you'd like to call into the show, the number is 214-787-1008.

Voting for All-Stars underway...

The MLS All-Stars will take on West Ham United of the English Premier League on Thursday, July 24 at BMO Field in Toronto. Twelve FC Dallas players are on the ballot...

The MLS First XI will be selected from a combination of online fan ballots (25 percent of the vote), with coaches and general managers, players, and media each holding 25 percent of the vote to combine for the remaining 75 percent. Online voting for fans concludes on Wednesday, July 2.

Click here for the official release...Click here to vote.

Cloudy Skies...

Ahead of Wednesday's off day, the team got in a two-hour practice this morning, starting and finishing the session with some running. But most of the time was spent playing 3 v 3 in a grid surrounded by static players around the perimeter, with Dario and Josh in the nets.

Ricardinho did not train with the team today nor yesterday due to a right thigh injury. Instead, he worked on the side with head athletic trainer Joshua Watts. He originally took a shot to his thigh at San Jose, was hit again in the same area in practice last Friday, and finally suffered another knock in Saturday's game at Salt Lake.

Dax McCarty left for Germany today to have his sports hernia surgery. He will be back in Dallas on Friday night.

Blake Wagner and Brek Shea will depart tomorrow to join the U.S. U-23 National Team in France for the Toulon International Tournament from May 20-29.

The rest of the guys will be back in to train Thursday through Saturday at 10 a.m. in preparation for Sunday's game against the Galaxy.

Lambo returns to training...

Josh Lambo was cleared to resume full contact training today, working with goalkeeper coach Drew Keeshan during the morning practice session.

As a reminder, the 17-year old sustained a couple of serious injuries in his first game back on March 30.

Josh has often asked us to pass along a big thank you from himself and his family to the fans for all the encourage words and support.

On another note, Ray Burse's Portland Timbers tied the Seattle Sounders 0-0 on Saturday. He and the Timbers defense have only given up one goal in five games this year, and his four shutouts lead the lead early on.

Two more going to Europe...

UPDATED: We told you this morning that Blake Wagner and Brek Shea might be going to Europe this week, and now it's been confirmed. U.S. U-23 head coach Peter Nowak has included Blake and Brek on the roster for the upcoming Toulon International Tournament from May 20-29 in Toulon, France.

The guys will leave Dallas this Wednesday and join the U-23 team in France on Thursday. Read the full press release here.

Dax McCarty will also be heading to Europe this week, for sports hernia surgery in Germany. This will be a quick trip for Dax --- he'll depart tomorrow afternoon and is expected to be back in town by Friday night.

Thanks to Seth Weaver for the photos.

FCD 5, RSL 3

The Reserves defeated RSL's Reserves this morning 5-3 in a game played in the mountains of Park Slope. RSL took a 3-2 lead into the half, but Dallas scored three unanswered second half goals to secure the win. We'll recap FCD's goals for now (the complete recap will be on the sites soon).

Dallas scored first in the 22nd. Blake Wagner sent a ball across to the far right post, where Eric Avila cleanly brought it down and quickly beat his man, then left the ball back for Bobby Rhine to score from 10 yards out.

Avila was involved on the second goal in the 29th. Taking a ball to the right endline, Avila sent a ball to the top of the six. Dominic Oduro's diving header was somehow saved by Chris Seitz, but the ball deflected in off RSL's Nick Besagno two yards from the goal.

In the 68th, Chase Wileman kept a ball in play on the right endline, staying onsides as an RSL defender guarded the goalmouth. From a very acute angle, Wileman's shot hit the far left side of net, tying the game at 3-3.

Aaron Pitchkolan then gave FCD the lead in the 77th, driving home a loosely cleared ball off a free kick with low volley from 18 yards out.

Oduro sealed the game with a break-away goal in stoppage time, taking a ball from midfield alone at goal, and rounding the keeper before easily shooting it in.

FC Dallas (3-4-1-2): Grazcyk, Daniels, Pitckolan, Dello-Russo, Wagner (McCarty 70), Wileman, Wallace, Rhine, Avila, Shea, Oduro.

Scoring Summary:
DAL - Rhine (Avila) 22'
RSL - Findley 25'
DAL - Own goal (Besagno) 29'
RSL - Cordoba (PK) 40'
RSL - Movsisyan 44'
DAL - Wileman 68'
DAL - Pitchkolan 77'
DAL - Oduro 92+

FCD 1, RSL 2

Recap, comments, boxscore, highlights on fcdallas.com and mlsnet.com...here's how they started...

-------------------Sala----------------------
----Moor--------Davino---------Serioux---
---Rocha---Saragosa----Ricchetti---Toja---
------Cooper---Thompson----Alvarez----

• With losses by Los Angeles and Colorado tonight, FCD remains in a first place tie with Colorado in the Western Conference (2-2-3, 9 pts).
• Dallas is now 8-3-1 all-time versus Salt Lake.
• This was Dallas’ first loss on the road this season (1-1-2)...also first loss to a Western Conference opponent (1-1-3).
• Tonight was the first time ever that Dallas has lost a game in which Kenny Cooper scored a goal. FCD is now 15-1-3 all-time when Cooper scores.
• Cooper’s fifth goal of the season ties him with Columbus’ Robbie Rogers for second-most in the League behind LA’s Landon Donovan (eight goals). It also surpassed Cooper’s goal total of 2007 (four), when a broken leg caused him to miss more than half the season.
• This was Cooper’s 20th career regular season goal, making him the eighth player in team history to score at least 20 goals, and third fastest to reach the mark (in 52 games).
• The goal snapped a streak of 236 minutes since the last Dallas tally, an 80th minute goal by Abe Thompson on April 20 in a 2-0 win at Chivas USA.
• RSL’s 28th minute goal snapped an individual streak for FCD defensive midfielder Marcelo Saragosa – it was the first time this year the opponent scored while Saragosa was on the field. The Brazilian had played 353 consecutive minutes this season without the opposition scoring, which was by far the longest such streak by a field player in MLS this season. New England’s Chase Hilgenbrink is second at 168 minutes.
• This was the first game this season in which Dallas trailed at the half.

Snow on the mountains...

No issues with the flights today...we landed here in Salt Lake City a little before 4 pm MT, and where at the hotel within the hour. The window shades were up as we flew over the mountains, still covered in snow and giving the impression of it being cold out - its actually nice out (now).

At just about all our trips so far, we've had at least one media outlet contact us in advance to request an interview with Duilio upon arrival. Today, as we requested, the TV crew waited for Duilio in the lobby - and he sat down with them for the 15 minute interview before checking in.

We brought 26 players, with Graczyk meeting us here. Dario trained fully this morning, so he should be good to go tomorrow. Adrian had another good session today, so he's also expected to also be available. Actually, everyone that is here is available - the coaches will have some decisions to make for the 11 starters and available subs.

We're off to dinner now, and we're told there are tickets available for the Lakers vs Jazz game; we may have to check that out...

Watching and reading...

English Video: Arturo and Steve Morrow...Spanish Video: Dario and Pablo...

If you're up for reading, click here for the preview and game guide...included: some good memories of previous contests between FCD and RSL.

In addition, RSL head coach Jason Kreis today was suspended for Saturday's game by MLS for public criticism of MLS officiating. Last June, Kreis was ejected a few minutes before Oduro scored his stoppage-time game-winning goal.

Goalkeepers...

Dario had to sit out the second part of today's practice with an injury to his left foot, which happened earlier in training...David Mosalve and goalkeeper coach Drew Keeshan each defended a goal during the short-sided games...Josh Lambo has been told that next week he can resume full training...we're bringing both Monsalve and Mike Graczyk to Salt Lake to be available for Saturday and Sunday. Ray will remain in Portland this weekend.

Morrow Focused...

Photo: Rick Yeatts / FC Dallas.

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Steve Morrow on the rumors this morning linking him to the Walsall coaching opening:

"The rumors from England linking my name with the Walsall job are exactly just that - rumors! There is typically much speculation in England at this time of year as the season is finishing. Obviously I am under contract here at FC Dallas, very happy and focused on winning a Championship this year."

The Marquee is up...

It took a long time, in fact, a couple years of back and forth discussions between local government entities and us to finally approve this, but the tollway marquee is finally up.

The entire piece is 51 feet tall from the ground to the top of the arc...the graphics LED board is 24 feet wide by 20 feet tall. It's located about halfway up the PHP complex, in front of the soon to be completed hotel, adjacent to the service road which boarders the Tollway, and in site of our offices - which helps since we'll be controlling the graphics from here.

A few months ago, when the tollway opened past Pizza Hut Park, the NTTA estimated the number of vehicles passing to be at 80,000 per day. We're thinking that has grown by now...

We're expecting all the pieces to be in place over the next couple days, and then begin testing the graphics by the weekend if not early next week. If all stays on course, it should be functioning by the May 18 game.

Roster adjustments...

A few weeks ago, Alex Yi retired from professional soccer, leaving open a spot on the team's 18 man senior roster. We're now in the process of filling that spot - the player will be third-year defender/midfielder Michael Dello-Russo (Right, photo: Seth Weaver/FC Dallas).

It's also been a while since David Wagenfuhr has played, and it will be at least another six weeks before he's even eligible to play again.

Following the team's preseason game versus Atletico Paranaense, in which David scored a goal, he informed the team of the headache he had. It was quickly determined he had sustained a concussion, though he didn't have symptoms until a few days later. On Friday of last week, he was placed on the six-week disabled list, which means he must sit out the next six weeks before being eligible to play again.

The six-week DL is new this year (scroll down to letter K), and also allows a team to replace such a player on the roster, provided the team has salary cap space available. Taking David's place on the senior roster for the next six weeks is defender Andrew Daniels.

These adjustments leave two open spots for developing players under the age of 25 (for the time being) .

FCD TV - Wheldon's visit...

We made it back to Dallas fine last night, which maybe should have been its own post...today, the guys went through a workout outdoors, at one point playing through a 15-20 downpour...they'll be back on Wednesdsay...

In the meantime, the latest FCD TV gives you a look at Dan Wheldon's visit last week...

FCD 2, San Jose 0

The reserves played this morning, putting on the best performance of the year. Abe scored a minute before the half, and Eric Avila followed in stoppage time.

The defense held the shutout, though seeing fewer chances than last night.

Lineup (3-4-3): Ray Burse (David Monsalve 46), Andrew Daniels, Aaron Pitchkolan, Michael Dello-Russo, Brek Shea, Chase Wileman, Eric Avila, Bobby Rhine, Dominic Oduro, Ricardinho (Jamie Watson 63), Abe Thompson.

FCD 0, San Jose 0

Adrian didn't pass a pregame fitness test, so Anthony Wallace gets his second career start - and first at left back. The other change is the combination of Marcelo Saragosa and Pablo Ricchetti in the center of the field, with Andre Rocha going out right. Dax is available and on the bench, as is Bobby Rhine.

UPDATED (post-game): recap, comments, box score, highlights on mlsnet.com and fcdallas.com...some other notes...

• FC Dallas is now 2-1-3, 9 points on the season, and remain in first place in the Western Conference. It was the first time facing San Jose since the 2005 season.
• This was the first of six consecutive games against Western Conference opponents. Dallas is now 1-0-3 versus the West this year.
• This was the team’s third shutout of the season; it was also the second consecutive shutout on the road.
• FCD has surrendered only one goal in its last four games (360 minutes). The three shutouts place Dario Sala in a three-way tie for most in MLS.
• Dallas is undefeated on the road this year (1-0-2), and is 2-0-2 over its last four road games dating back to 2007. The four game road undefeated streak is one off the all-time team record set from May-June 2005.
• Adrian Serioux did not pass a pre-game fitness test (left leg injury) and was replaced in the starting lineup at left back by Anthony Wallace, who made his first start of the year and second career start.
• Duilio Davino and Sala are the only two players to play every minute of every game this season.

In San Jose...

We arrived into San Jose on Friday around 6 pm local time. As we taxied to the terminal, we could see the Dallas Stars' plane sitting on the tarmac. We'll leave it to your imagination the comments that were overheard from players and staff as they saw the plane, complete with the green star on the tail and large words "Dallas Stars" across the body of the plane.

We got our bags and went straight to Buck Shaw Stadium, the Earthquakes home for the next few seasons until their own stadium is built.

We've read how much work has been put into the stadium to make it a nice home for the Quakes. We quickly realized that the playing surface is great. They've just recently installed it, and both San Jose and FCD had a chance to walk through it on Friday for the first time. We're told by the Quakes that it's 71 x 110 yards, and that it will accommodate over 10,000 fans.

Adjacent to this 'mini-stadium' is a turf field, which is the Quakes training field and where tomorrow's Reserve game will be played. In our opinion, also a nice field (for a synthetic surface). Ricardinho had fun calling some of the guys off the main field walk through, telling them to join him in checking out the field the Reserves will play on on Sunday.

We then checked into our hotel, the Fairmont here in downtown San Jose. Very nice! We learned the Stars were staying here, though we didn't see them following the loss (wonder if they just flew right back to Dallas?). Right up the road, the Texas Rangers defeated the Oakland A's at the Coliseum.

As you wait for tonight's game, click here for the game preview and notes.

Going back to Cali..

Here we are, sitting at DFW airport at 4:20 pm CT, waiting for our scheduled 4:30 pm flight to San Jose...and... the reason we can type now is because, well, we're not boarding...we haven't heard any update as to why, so we'll take this opportunity to update you.

24 of the 27 roster players are here with us - Wagenfuhr is still out; Ibee is on an extended leave of absence, and Ray will be joining us in San Jose. We've also brought Alex Fichera, David Monsalve, and Jamie Watson. Josh Lambo is on the trip, as is Adrian, who will be a gametime decision.

We incorrectly reported yesterday that Adrian has pain in his back/groin. We were corrected today - he's having problems on his left leg, which may have stemmed from his lower back. The MRI proved this not to be the case. He's day to day at the moment.

Finally, here's a little trivia: It's only been two years since San Jose had a team (they moved to Houston in 2006, but kept their name, color, and history). Of the 27 players on the FCD roster, only 8 were playing in MLS when the Quakes last suited up...can you name them...

FCD TV - a national TV broadcast

We walked into the ESPN2 TV truck last week and were pretty impressed, so we decided to shoot a behind the scenes video to give fans an idea on what goes on - off camera - on ESPN2's MLS Primetime Thursday...Associate Director Shaw Brown walks us through the truck, while JP Dellecamera gives us a bit on how the announcers prepare...enjoy...

Practice update...

How about we give a little update on the team today...so going back to Monday, most of the guys came back from out of town trips, and the team went through an evening session...Tuesday saw the guys go out to the Michael Johnson Center...Wednesday and Thursday they were all back on the adidas field for complete sessions

A couple notes from the week:

* Dax found out last week that he has a sports hernia - this time on the left side. For those unfamiliar with the injury, players can often play through this - when the discomfort and / or pain become more extreme, the player usually decides to to rest or have surgery. In Dax's case, he tells us he's fine to play right now. However, knowing that we have a the majority of the season ahead of us, and that he has a chance to possibly play in the Olympics this summer, the staff has scheduled an appointment for him to get this taken care. He'll be heading to Germany in a couple of weeks for the surgery, though he's available to play in the short term.

* Dominic took advantage of the weekend off to rest an injured ankle, which was swollen last Friday morning following the NE game...he's trained this week...

* Adrian has been kept off the field the last couple of days after incurring some pain in his left hip / groin...we'll see how he feels on Friday and Saturday before determining his status...

* Bobby Rhine has returned to full training this week...

* Josh Lambo started working out outside with the trainers this week, though he's not yet been involved in any goalkeeping drills...

* Finally, we brought in league pool goalkeeper David Monsalve, who will be with the team for the next couple of weeks.

The team will train at 10:30 on Friday. We're expecting to arrive in San Jose around 6 pm, hopefully go straight to Buck Shaw stadium for a walk-through before checking in at the hotel.

Ray Burse update...

On Tuesday, the United Soccer League announced its USL First Division Team of the Week for Week 2, which includes FCD's and Portland Timbers goalkeeper Ray Burse.

Ray tallied eight combined saves in the two wins last week over Seattle (2-0) and Minnesota (2-1). Ray was also in goal in the Timber's season opening 1-0 win over Puero Rico a week before. He has a 0.33 goals-against average, two shutouts and 11 total saves through the first three matches of the 2008 season.

Portland is currently in first place in the USL First Division with a record of 3-0-0 (9pts)...up next is the Rochester Raging Rhinos on May 8 at PGE Park.

Ray will join FC Dallas in San Jose this weekend and be available for the game against the Quakes on Saturday and the Reserve game on Sunday.

IndyCar's Dan Wheldon visits FC Dallas

One of IndyCar's top drivers, Dan Wheldon (currently ranked third), was a guest of FC Dallas today at training. Having flown in from Florida this morning, he came straight to Pizza Hut Park, first answering questions from the media then going out to the adidas Field.

Our kit man Marcus hooked Dan up with his own FC Dallas training gear, complete with his racing car's #10. Once Dan took the field, Steve Morrow introduced him to the team and then presented him a # 10 Wheldon FC Dallas home jersey. The guys then went out for extra 5 minutes of 11 v 11 drill, with Wheldon as one of the forwards.

It was all in fun, and Wheldon even took a penalty kick to cap off session. In typical soccer celebration, the guys then celebrated the goal as if a final was won.

While some guys stayed around for some finishing drills, we had set up a golf cart race between Dan and Marcelo Saragosa, who we knew to be a race fan.

Our staff had 'tested' the two golf carts - and the Pizza Hut Park one tested slower than the FCD branded cart. So, we put Marcelo in the FCD cart, and Wheldon on the PHP one (we didn't tell either of them).
The two got side by side on the blue lot....they looked at each other to say 'Go', and Wheldon got off his line real quick. Marcelo could only laugh while trying to catch Wheldon in the short race around the parking lot...everyone had a good time!

Fans can see Dan racing in town on June 7 at the Texas Motor Speedway when he races in the Bombardier Learjet 500.

Bundesliga...

You may have read a story or two 'announcing' that Borussia Moenchengladbach would be coming to the U.S. to play FC Dallas and the Colorado Rapids...Stay tuned - as soon as we get word from Soccer United Marketing that the details are confirmed, we'll share them with you.

FCD at Revs date change...

Last week we hosted the New England Revolution here at Pizza Hut Park...we were expecting to play them at their place on Sunday, June 8. That game will now be moved to Friday, June 6, at 5:30 pm CT. The game will be available on the MLS Direct Kick package, and we're working on a local TV partner...

Timelapse video of Pizza Hut Park...

Our grounds crew staff tells us the field held up great - the weather's cooperation was vital, with the cool days, clouds, and little raining keeping the grass cool under the terraflor. We have another show on Saturday, then we have a two week break before we play again at home, so we should be in good shape for the May 18 game vs. LA.

We placed a video camera in the press box and began taping around 6 pm on Thursday, April 24 and stopped at night on Monday, April 28. The camera took a ‘half-second snapshot’ every ten minutes for a little over four days (so one hour was three seconds worth of video; one day was one minute, 12 seconds). In order to make the video shorter, we removed couple of overnight (dark) shots and then sped the video up (3 times). Click below to watch the four days in 1 min, 50 secs...

Special Guest in Training on Wednesday...

From time to time, we’ve seen FCD players interact with athletes from other sports, such as PGA Tour golfer Justin Rose, former Dallas Cowboys kicker Martin Grammatica, and most recently Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson. We’ll see that continue this Wednesday, when IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon joins the team in training. Wheldon, who won the Turbo Indy 300 yesterday in Kansas, will be in town to promote the Bombardier Learjet 550 at Texas Motor Speedway on Sat. June 7.

The English-born driver will hold interviews with media inside before joining the team in training around 11:30 a.m., where he’ll knock around the ball with the guys run and through some drills. Wheldon grew up playing soccer and is a huge fan of the sport, so we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do on the field.

Jimmy Buffett and EdgeFest 17 at Pizza Hut Park

Less than 24 hours from last night's kickoff, we've got the field covered and chairs in place for Saturday's Jimmy Buffett concert here at Pizza Hut Park. The RVs started coming in early this morning, and the red and gold lots are on there way to being filled already. If you're driving here on Saturday, make sure you read the parking rules.

Following the concert, we'll be working overnight to clean up, pick up the 11K chairs, and begin setting up for Sunday's EdgeFest 17 festival, which starts at noon and which will feature 22 acts playing on three stages - the main stage inside the stadium and two stages set up out on the blue lot. Acts include 3 Doors Down, My Chemical Romance, Blue October, Seether, Puddle of Mudd, Chevelle, Finger Eleven, Filter, Miser and many more. Click here for the lineup and times of performances.

On Monday, we'll have all the pieces of teraflor lifted to give the field some more air - and then, the floor will go back down next Friday ahead of the Kenny Chesney concert on May 3.

The team is off until Monday evening, but our grounds crew, operations, facility, and business ops crews will be working pretty much around the clock for the next 50 something hours. Our FCD TV crew has set up a camera to record a time lapse of the weekend - this began yesterday during the game.

What will you be doing without FCD soccer this weekend? Golf, NFL draft, NBA playoffs, NHL playoffs, MLB, MLS soccer, concerts?

We here at the blog are following the team's lead...see you all on Monday!

FCD 0, NE Revs 1

As always, a recap, box score, highlights, and comments can be found at fcdallas.com.

This was FC Dallas’ first loss of the season and the first time the team has been shutout this year...FCD is now 2-1-2, 8 pts in the season and in first place in the Western Conference...FCD’s all-time record versus New England is now 9-20-1, and 4-11-1 at home...the Revs goal in the 72nd ended Dallas’ streak of consecutive minutes without surrendering a goal at 252 minutes, the longest in the league this year.

Steve Morrow and Drew Moor talk about the game below...

Gameday...

Photo: Rick Yeatts/ FC Dallas

-----------------------------------------

It's looking like we'll have nice weather for the game tonight...it's sunny and blue skies out here at PHP right now, fitting for a night we'll honor Frisco Mayor Mike Simpson. This will be his last home game as mayor, so at halftime we'll recognize him for all he did to help get PHP built...

If you come up early, make sure to stop by the FC Dallas Experience, where Josh Lambo and Chase Wileman will be signing autographs before the game...we know the guys appreciate the support...speaking of, many of the players have also purchased tickets for tonight's game - not that they need to, just that they know it benefits the Frisco Education Foundation.

Following yesterday's practice on the stadium field, a bunch of the players and Morrow were requested for short interviews by the ESPN2 broadcast team of JP Dellacamera (play-by-play)and John Harkes (color), as well as Marc Connolly (researcher / stats).

The game will broadcast through the various ESPN International outlets to many countries around the world. For some of the players asking, we were able to confirm that it will be shown live in Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, and Brazil - as well as in the U.S. on both ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes.

Stats and notes can be found in the preview and the game guide.

Don't forget, $1 beers from 6:30-7:30 on the stage, and $1 sausages throughout the game.

Tune in...

As we get ready for Thursday's game, some of the guys have been requested for a few interviews...as likely happens to many teams, we have a few players that are requested often and / or repeatedly. When we can, we try to spread the players around - first, to get more of them exposure, thus fans can hear / see more players; and second, so we don't have to have one player doing all the interviews.

Here's what we mean...
* Dax talked with ESPN.com about the Olympic Draw...

* This morning, Duilio was on ESPN Deportes Radio's national morning show "Raza Deportiva"

* Steve Morrow had an interview with ABC Sports Radio this morning (UPDATE, cancelled at last minute)...he'll also be talking to The Oregonian newspaper who's doing a story on Ray Burse.. .

* Kenny and Drew will be on the Southwest Kia Sportstalk show tonight (KFWD-52, 6:30 pm and 11:30 replay)...

* Dario will 'chatting' on the ESPN Deportes site today at 2 pm CT (he tells us he'll take questions in English, if they allow them)...

* Arturo answered question's for Sports Illustrated's "Pop Culture Grid" (next week's edition)...

* Adrian will be doing an interview for a Canadian magazine today...

* ESPN2 will be taping player intros following today's practice - we'll do the entire team.

And, our own FCD TV talked to Marcelo, Blake, and Abe ahead of tomorrow's game below...

Abe and Blake...

A message from Cooper and Moor...

Frisco area residents may have heard that Thursday's game has been tagged as "Frisco Community Night." All Frisco Independence School District (FISD) students and staff will receive a ticket to the game, and portions of all other tickets sold to this game will go directly back to the Frisco Education Foundation - which provides scholarships to local kids.

Our players have made numerous appearances at schools over the past couple weeks, inviting the kids to game. Since we can't get to all the classrooms at all the schools, a couple of the guys made a video for the schools to show...we asked Kenny and Drew to come up with their message - and as you'll see below, they had some fun making the video...make sure you stay around for the 'bloopers' at around the 1:53 mark.

Dollar Nights...

If you didn't see this on Monday, we're starting a new pr