Plauderecke » openly gay player drafted by a pro football

NEW YORK -- Michael Sam was picked by the St. Louis Rams in the seventh round of the NFL draft Saturday, becoming the first openly gay player drafted by a pro football team. Sam played at Missouri, and came out as gay in media interviews earlier this year. His team and coaches knew his secret and kept it for his final college season. He went on to have the best season of his career: He was the Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year. "Thank you to the St. Louis Rams and the whole city of St. Louis. Im using every once of this to achieve greatness!!" Sam tweeted with a frenzied typo moments after he was picked, including a picture of himself wearing a Rams cap and a pink polo shirt. The pick came after several rounds of suspense. The first round of the day came and went, no Sam. Then the second, and the third, and finally, the day was down to just a handful of picks. When Mike Kensil, the NFLs vice-president of game operations, walked to the podium at Radio City Music Hall in the drafts final minutes to announce the Rams second-to-last pick, the crowd got a sense something was up. Very few of the last day picks were announced at the podium. Twitter lit up with suggestions the Rams were about to make news. When Kensil said: "The St. Louis Rams select ... Michael Sam..." the fans gave a hearty cheer, chanting "Yes! Yes! Yes!" and "Michael Sam!" Sam was in San Diego watching with friends and family at the home of his agent, Joe Barkett of Empire Athletes. ESPN and the NFL Network had cameras there and showed Sams reaction. Sam was on the phone bending over, with his boyfriend hugging him and rubbing his left bicep. When Sam got off the phone, the tears started. He gave his boyfriend a big kiss and a long hug as he cried and his eyes reddened. After, they shared cake -- and another kiss. Sam will start his professional career not far from the place where he played his college ball, with three former Missouri teammates. The 6-foot-2, 255-pound Sam was considered a mid-to-late round pick, far from a sure thing to be drafted. He played defensive end in college, but hes short for that position in the NFL and slower than most outside linebackers, the position hell need to transition to at the professional level. He was taken with the 249th overall pick out of 256. Players from Marist, Maine and McGill University in Canada were selected before Sam. "In the world of diversity we live in now, Im honoured to be a part of this," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said during an interview on ESPN. The impact of Sams selection goes far beyond football. At a time when gay marriage is gaining acceptance among Americans, Sams entry into the NFL is a huge step toward the integration of gay men into professional team sports. Pro sports have in many ways lagged behind the rest of society in acceptance. Publicly, most people in and related to the NFL have been supportive of Sam. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said Sam would be welcome in the league and judged solely on his ability to play. A few wondered whether teams would be reluctant to draft Sam because of all the media attention that would come with it. Fair or not, the NFL -- coming off a season in which a bullying scandal involving players on the Miami Dolphins was one of the biggest stories in sports -- was looking at a possible public relations hit if Sam was not drafted. He would likely have been signed as a free agent and given a chance to make a team in training camp, but to many it would have looked as if he was being rejected. Now that hes there, it could be seen as an opportunity for the NFL to show that crass locker room culture is not as prevalent as it might have looked to those who followed the embarrassing Dolphins scandal. 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Beckham says "nothing has been confirmed yet, but its something I am very excited about." He adds that "Miami is something that really excites me because there is a great energy down there.ROME -- Mario Balotelli has expressed astonishment at the reaction to an argument he had with some Italian football pundits after a game on Friday. Following AC Milans 2-0 loss to Roma, Balotelli had a tense exchange with the Sky Italia TV studio hosts. Balotelli said: "When Milan wins Mario is great, when it loses Mario is bad." Told by one studio host that he doesnt move enough on the pitch, Balotelli responded: "You dont know anything about football. Trust me." His comments provoked plenty of reaction both supportive and critical, and Balotelli responded on Twitter around 4 a.m. local time on Saturday morning, saying in Italian: "Mamma mia I divide Italy in 2! Wow! While nearly everyone abroad is united with me!" Then he added in English: "What a strange game." Balotelli, whose career had been littered with controversies and clashes with both coaches and teammates, was largely ineffective against Roma and he was substituted in the 69th minute. As Balotelli walked off, he appeared to question coach Clarence Seedorfs decision to remove him. "I didnt understand my substitution," Balotelli said in the interview. Told that he doesnt criticize himsself enough, Balotelli said "Im a very normal player.dddddddddddd Its you who says Im a standout." Balotelli is having a strong season and set a personal record last week with his 14th goal of the campaign. "I chose to take off Balotelli, but when he came off he didnt say anything special to me," Seedorf said. "We shouldnt always analyze every detail, when there is something negative to say about Balo, you are always ready. There are things said and done in the heat of the moment, but then its talked about and resolved. "Hes coming off the back of many positive weeks, both with goals and with his behaviour." Balotelli has a history of being in the headlines as much for his antics off the pitch as his talent on it. He made light of his troubles in 2011 when he was with Manchester City by unveiling a T-shirt with the slogan "Why Always Me?" during a 6-1 rout of Manchester United in a Premier League derby. That came after reports that a fire had broken out at his house when fireworks were let off in his bathroom. Balotelli escaped punishment earlier in 2011 after throwing a dart at a City youth-team player. No one was hurt in the incident. 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