NEW YORK -- For nearly three years, Jadeveon Clowney couldnt wait to get to the NFL, and the league was just as eager to add the player some called the best defensive prospect in a decade. No surprise: Clowney is the Texans man. But Thursdays first pick of the NFL draft didnt come without some intrigue about how it would all turn out. There had been criticism of Clowneys work ethic last season and questions about whether the Texans would hold or trade the No. 1 slot. "I just been proving a lot of people wrong throughout my life," Clowney said. "Growing up, I grew up hard. I always said Im going to do something great. Hopefully, Im going to be a Hall of Famer one day." Houston will take that. This drafts other big name, Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, sat with a sullen look on his face until Cleveland made its third trade of the round and grabbed the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner at No. 22. To rousing cheers and chants of "Johnny, Johnny," Manziel smiled widely as he walked onto the Radio City Music Hall stage. "If you call it a slide, I wouldnt call it that at all," he said. "I was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft. "Its a great story. Its great for me to end up there, at a team that has fans that are as passionate as I am on the field." Manziels wait added plenty of suspense nearly three hours after the Texans took their time selecting Clowney. Rarely does a team not reveal the top overall choice until it is announced, and there was wide speculation the Texans had soured on the defensive end, whose junior season at South Carolina was accompanied by criticism he played it safe to stay healthy for the pros. After Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the pick, fans filling Radio City Music Hall to capacity applauded Clowney as he held up his index finger, his eyes moist, a relieved look on his face. Just like the 30 prospects on hand, the fans were extra eager to see who would wind up where after the draft was pushed back from late April because the theatre was unavailable. "Its been a long time. It just kicked in at the end there, man, Ive been drafted," he said. Clowney, 21, brings size, speed and power to a lineup that already has 2012 NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. His diligence had been questioned after he slipped from 13 sacks to just three in 2013. Critics said he was protecting himself from injury in his junior year before declaring early for the draft. He is the first defensive player taken first overall since Houston selected another end, Mario Williams, in 2006. Williams now is with Buffalo. Houston also made the top pick in its first season, 2002, taking quarterback David Carr. He never lived up to that billing; the Texans hope Clowney has more of an impact. Tackle Greg Robinson, whose blocking helped high-powered Auburn make the national championship game last season, went second to St. Louis. The Rams owned the pick as the final payment for a 2012 trade with Washington that allowed the Redskins to draft quarterback Robert Griffin III. St. Louis is concerned about the health of starting left tackle Jake Long, who is coming off knee surgery. The first quarterback to go went to Jacksonville in the third slot, but it wasnt Johnny Football. Blake Bortles of Central Florida, whose stock shot up last season and in subsequent workouts. At 6-5, 232, Bortles drew comparisons to Ben Roethlisberger because of his combination of size and mobility. Jacksonville missed the last time it took a QB in the first round, Blaine Gabbert in 2011. The Jaguars gave up on the inconsistent Gabbert, who struggled to read defences and was benched for journeyman Chad Henne. Gabbert is now a backup in San Francisco. "Hes a down-to-earth guy, a self-made guy, a blue-collar guy and he wants to be the best he can be," said Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell, who added a word of caution: "He just needs a little bit of time." Seeing a chance to grab playmaking receiver Sammy Watkins of Clemson, Buffalo swapped spots with Cleveland, also sending a first- and fourth-round selection next year to move up from ninth to fourth. "Dynamic playmaker, and thats what this game is all about," Bills GM Doug Whaley said of Watkins. "Hes automatically going to make our quarterback (EJ Manuel) better." Texas A&M tackle Jake Matthews, the son of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, went to Atlanta with the sixth overall pick. The Falcons leaked so badly on the offensive line in 2013 as they plummeted from NFC South champion to 4-12 that Matt Ryan was sacked 44 times. Another Aggies star was chosen next, receiver Mike Evans to Tampa Bay. The 6-4, 231-pound Evans is durable, versatile -- and quite emotional. He also couldnt hold back the tears when Goodell called his name. The crowd thought Manziel might go eighth when Cleveland traded up one spot to get Minnesotas pick. So when the Browns took cornerback Justin Gilbert of Oklahoma State, there was a loud groan from the fans. Gilbert smiled wryly as he shook Goodells hand. Minnesota grabbed UCLA linebacker Anthony Barr, Detroit selected North Carolinas Eric Ebron, by far the best tight end in this crop, and Tennessee filled a need on the offensive line with Michigan tackle Taylor Lewan. Finally, a local team was on the clock and the audience approved lustily when the Giants chose LSU receiver Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham was followed by Pitt DT Aaron Donald to St. Louis, Virginia Tech CB Kyle Fuller to Chicago, Ohio State LB Ryan Shazier to Ohio State, Notre Dame G Zack Martin to Dallas, Alabama LB C.J. Mosley to Baltimore and, as fans chanted "J-E-T-S," Louisville safety Calvin Pryor is New York-bound. Minnesota finished off the opening round by trading with Seattle to select Louisvilles Teddy Bridgewater, the third quarterback taken. Bridgewater was an early entrant into the draft, but already had graduated. Bart Starr Jersey . -- Jonas Hiller is cautiously confident he has kicked his vertigo. Dave Robinson Jersey . In the last race before the Sochi Olympics, Bjoergen followed up her win in the 10-kilometre classical race on Saturday by beating World Cup sprint leader Denise Herrmann of Germany by 0.43 seconds for her fifth victory of the season. http://www.officialgreenbaypackerspro.co...packers-jersey/. Cruz set the tone with a two-run homer in the first inning, and Baltimore scored eight times in the eighth to pull away for a 12-3 victory in Game 1. The major league leader with 40 homers during the regular season, Cruz added an RBI single to his early blast off Max Scherzer. Paul Hornung Jersey . The 19-year-old Swiss centre back will initially have to impress in Uniteds reserve side to earn a spot in the first team. Veseli says "Manchester United has a long history of younger players coming through and hopefully I can follow and do the same. Green Bay Packers Jerseys . No, the San Antonio star didnt announce retirement plans during an off day at the NBA Finals on Wednesday. BOULDER, Colo. -- For a team that built its reputation on stifling defence, fourth-ranked Arizona sure showed some offensive prowess Saturday night. The Wildcats routed the Buffaloes 88-61 for their first win in Boulder since 1973. They did it by holding Colorado without a bucket until 9:50 remained in the first half, then by shooting 84.6 per cent in the second half. "They whipped us tonight every which way you can whip a team," Colorado coach Tad Boyle said. Freshman Aaron Gordon shook off a poor performance at Utah last week by scoring 21 of his season-best 23 points in the second half and Nick Johnson added 20 points for the Wildcats, who made 22 of 26 shots after halftime. "Weve had a few shootarounds here, we felt comfortable in their gym, it all just clicked for us," Johnson said. It was a rare breather for the Wildcats (25-2, 12-2 Pac-12), who scrapped their way through a series of close games since beating Colorado by 12 in Tucson, Ariz., on Jan. 23, before close losses at Cal and archrival Arizona State dropped them from the top spot in the AP Top 25. After that first game in Tempe, Buffaloes forward Xavier Johnson dissed the Cats, saying, "theyre not that good." He also said that even without injured star Spencer Dinwiddie, the Buffaloes were the more talented team and he suggested the rematch in Boulder would be a blowout. He was right, but it was the Wildcats who made this one a laugher, not the Buffaloes, who were throttled by Arizonas suffocating defence and their hot shooting hands. "I dont think you have any of our players saying anything negative about Colorado, saying, Were going to win by 20," Arizona coach Sean Miller said. "We dont do that. For us, we have to play the right way. We have to compete hard. And certainly we respect Colorado." Coming off an emotionally draining win over the Sun Devils on Wednesday night that burnished their NCAA tournament credentials, the Buffaloes (20-8, 9-6) came out ice cold, missing their first 14 shots. They trailed 22-5 before Jaron Hopkins sank a 3-pointer from the left side 10:10 into the game. That sparked a 16-4 run by Colorado -- with seven points coming from the free throw line -- to make it 26-21 and force an Arizona timeout. The Wildcats settleed down thanks to a baseline drive by Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and a pull-up jumper by T.ddddddddddddJ. McConnell. The only field goal by a Buffaloes starter before halftime came on Askia Bookers jumper with 2 seconds left in the first half. After a horrendous start, however, the Buffaloes clawed their way back before Gordon sank three straight layups and Johnsons jumpers helped the Wildcats pull away. In celebration of senior night, Boyle gave 7-foot centre Ben Mills his first start of his career. He took the place of Josh Scott, who had started every game since Feb. 27, 2013, when he was dealing with a concussion. Scotts absence was quickly felt as Colorado was outrebounded 6-1 and fell behind 8-1 before Scott replaced Mills 2:49 into the game. But the Buffaloes didnt turn things around right away, as the Wildcats built those advantages to 10-3 on the boards and 14-3 on the scoreboard by the 14:39 timeout. Thanks to a 12-3 advantage at the stripe, however, the Buffs trailed just 31-25 at the half after shooting 6-for-27 from the floor. Scott, who led the Buffs with 18 points, sank a jumper to open the second half that made it a four-point game, but the Buffs couldnt get any closer and the Wildcats began to pull away when Kaleb Tarczewskis 3-pointer made it 40-33. "I think we got a little jump shot-happy, but I think thats a credit to them," Scott said. "I think we turned the ball over a couple of times at some key points in the game and its mainly because they pack the paint." About the only thing the crowd had to cheer about by the end was Mills 3-pointer in the final minute, the first of his college career. The 27-point loss was the biggest at home in the Boyle era, and he said it was particularly disconcerting with ESPNs College GameDay crew in town. "Our fans were so ready for this game, for this win, and we gave them nothing," Boyle said. "Thats a sick feeling to go home with and to live with. I havent been embarrassed many times as a coach, but I was embarrassed tonight at the way our team played." His players were, too. "Were all embarrassed, man, really embarrassed," Booker said. "This is something that, whether were on the road or at home, this should never happen again." Cheap Celtics JerseysWholesale Nets JerseysCheap Knicks JerseysCheap Stitched 76ers JerseysRaptors Jerseys ChinaCheap Bulls JerseysWholesale Cavaliers JerseysPistons Jerseys ChinaPacers Jerseys ChinaCheap Bucks Jerseys OnlineWholesale Hawks JerseysCheap Hornets JerseysWholesale Heat JerseysCheap Magic Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Wizards JerseysNuggets Jerseys ChinaTimberwolves Jerseys ChinaCheap Thunder Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Blazers JerseysWholesale Jazz JerseysCheap Warriors Jerseys For SaleCheap Clippers JerseysLakers Jerseys ChinaWholesale Suns JerseysCheap Kings Jerseys AuthenticCheap Mavericks JerseysRockets Jerseys ChinaCheap Grizzlies JerseysWholesale Pelicans JerseysSpurs Jerseys China ' ' '