TMZ Sports - Page 50

Don't count out Greg Schiano ... so says one of his most famous former players who tells TMZ Sports he's a GREAT COACH ... no matter what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers say.

We spoke to Eric LeGrand -- the former Rutgers University football star who suffered serious spinal damage back in 2010, back when Schiano was the head coach for the Scarlet Knights.

LeGrand -- who's still tight with the recently fired Bucs coach -- says Schiano's not the kind of guy who gives up ... telling us, "After taking a year off, he'll get back into football. That's what he does."

Eric continued, "He's a great coach and he's gonna be great on somebody's program."

Who needs Marshawn Lynch ... when there's MeowShawn Lynch?!!?!

The top kittens in the country are gearing up to face off ... and nuzzle each other ... at this year's Kitten Bowl -- and TMZ Sports has the pics of the athletes.

Justin Bieber posts a lot of videos of himself balling on a basketball court, but a former NBA star is calling him out now. Why Tracy Murray says Biebs can't hoop the way he THINKS he can.

Plus, DeSean Jackson's ex-gf moved on to Bieber -- but now the Eagles star has a new side piece ... porn star Michelle Maylene. It's nothing official yet ... but we gotta wonder -- athletes and porn stars -- good idea

Ex-NFL linebacker Bill Romanowski tells TMZ Sports ... there are a handful of dirty plays from his NFL career he wishes he could take back -- like the time he SNAPPED A DUDE'S FINGER!!!

Bill -- one of the most ferocious defensive players of all time -- is out in NYC for the Super Bowl ... and says he still feels bad about the time he was in a pile with running back Dave Meggett, grabbed the guy's finger and "cracked it like a chicken bone."

"I heard it and felt it ... and then heard the scream at the bottom of the pile."

Still, Bill admits, "There are probably 5 plays I'd love to take back ... but I can't."

LeBron James got in touch with his sensitive, emotional, crotch-thrusting side at a charity event in Miami this week ... breakin' it down to a Montell Jordan R&B classic ... and it was all on video.

James was part of a performance at Battioke -- an annual charity event thrown by his Miami Heat teammate Shane Battier.

King James -- along with Toney Douglas and James Jones -- got down to the 1998 jam "Let's Ride" ... with all three NBA stars showing off their best '90s Boys-II-Men-style dance moves.

Check out the clip -- it'll take you back to the days M.J. busted out those classic lyrics, "Now baby what's more than incredible, she did her thing ... 5'5" 146, swinging nothing but a g-string."

Ex-NFL stud Jarvis Green -- a 2x Super Bowl champ -- narrowly escaped being scammed into buying bogus shares of an NBA franchise ... and now the FBI is on the hunt for the con man behind the alleged scheme, TMZ Sports has learned.

The former New England Patriots defensive end -- who spent 8 seasons in the league -- tells us ... he was contacted by a person who claimed to affiliated with the Miami Heat and was offering to sell equity in the team so Green would be a partial owner.

Green said the guy sounded legit at first ... explaining, "He was telling me about LeBron James, courtside seats ... can you imagine high-fiving LeBron?"

The guy wanted more than $250k from Green -- but when the ex-NFL star started considering the offer, he became suspicious.

"It sounded amazing, but I kept thinking, 'Why Jarvis Green? Why not Tom Brady?' Something was off ... but I was excited."

Green says ... when the con man started pushing for bank account information, he contacted the Miami Heat to investigate. The Heat quickly called BS on the scheme and contacted the FBI.

We're told the feds got in touch with Green -- and opened up an investigation.

Sources familiar with the investigation tell us ... they believe the suspect could be the same person who allegedly scammed Warren Moon out of $200k in a similar scheme.

When contacted for comment, a rep for the FBI would only confirm there is an active investigation -- but would not comment on any specifics.

Your mom's Zumba class just got HARDCORE ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned, UFC face-smasher Mark Munoz is taking up dancercise -- and we dare you to crack a joke (at least to his face).

Munoz -- who's currently ranked #7 in UFC middleweights -- hit up the LA Fit Expo on Saturday ... where he fulfilled his New Year's Resolution of (that's right) learning Zumba.

And guess what -- Mark says he loved the class so much ... he's actually considering using some of the moves in his regular MMA workout routine.

The Charlie Sheen charity train chugs on ... TMZ has learned, the "Anger Management" star just donated an $8,000 pitching machine to a high school in L.A.

Sources tell TMZ, one of the baseball coaches at Santa Monica High School is an old friend of Charlie's ... so the actor decided to chip in and help his pal's team practice with a HomePlate Sports Tutor pitching machine ... an impressive piece of equipment that costs roughly $8,000-$9,000.

There's a little Aaron Rodgers syndrome going around in the NFL ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the mayors of S.F. and N.O. have still not paid off their bets after their teams LOST to the Seahawks in the playoffs.

Here's the deal ... the mayor of Seattle made "fun bets" with the guys in charge of San Francisco and New Orleans when the Seahawks faced the 49ers and the Saints in the playoffs, respectively.

Mitch Landrieu -- the Mayor of N.O. -- agreed to fork over a King Cake from Sucre (a famous bakery) and said he would tap celeb chef Greg Reggio to host a crawfish boil.

Edwin M. Lee -- the Mayor of S.F. -- agreed to send local ice cream and dessert treats that represent the city if the 9ers lost. He also agreed to help fundraise $10k for a Seattle food bank.

Of course, the Seahawks WON both games ... but our political sources tell us the Mayor of Seattle has not seen the spoils of the victory from either city.

One source tells us, "Admittedly, raising $10k could take some time ... but baking a King Cake doesn't take 3 weeks."

Richie Incognito stole a page from Johnny Manziel's playbook the other night ... taking TWO hot chicks home from a Hollywood hotspot ... and TMZ Sports has the footage.

Incognito hit up the fancy Nobu sushi joint in L.A. ... and escorted two young ladies into a waiting chauffeured Rolls Royce Ghost (worth around $300k).

FYI -- dude had a pretty big smile on his face. So, yeah ... good for him.

Of course, Manziel pulled the exact same move earlier this year ... going home with two hot ladies after a night of partying at a Hollywood nightclub. He ended up taking one of the girls out on a proper date a few nights later.

Being a rich and famous football player has its perks.

Justin Bieber has a seriously distorted view of reality ... at least when it comes to his basketball skills ... so says one former NBA star who tells TMZ Sports straight up, "Bieber can't hoop."

One day before he was arrested for DUI, Justin posted footage from a little 1-on-1 session with rapper Mack Maine ... in which Bieber "crossed" him up and then mad-dogged the camera like a tough guy.

But not everyone's impressed ... especially not former NBA badass Tracy Murray ... who had this reaction after watching the video:

"Get the f**k outta here!! He can't hoop!"

Murray continued, "Dude wasn't even guarding him. We woulda slapped the hat off his head back in the day playing like that."

Tom Brady recently announced he would not be watching the Super Bowl ... now, it's pretty obvious why.

The New England Patriots QB ran away to the Bahamas this week with his supermodel wife to take his mind off the fact his team won't be competing for the Lombardi Trophy on Sunday.

The 36-year-old future Hall of Famer recently told a media outlet ... "Truthfully, I could care less about watching the game. That's pretty much how I feel."

Yeah, we get it.

It's not just pride that's on the line on Sunday, 'cause the mayors of Denver and Seattle have just made an OFFICIAL SUPER BOWL bet ... and if the Seahawks lose, it's gonna get real fishy in the Mile High City.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Seattle mayor Ed Murray and Denver mayor Michael B. Hancock have just agreed to the terms of a S.B. bet.

Here's what's at stake:

If the Seahawks win ... Hancock (Denver) has agreed to wear a costume inspired by the Macklemore song, "Thrift Shop" ... since Macklemore is a bigtime Seattle guy.

Hancock says the costume will be designed by the Lifelong AIDS Alliance ... and he says he'll also send over some other Denver-themed items that will be auctioned off to raise money to the LAA.

If the Broncos win ... Murray (Seattle) says he'll ship salmon and Dungeness crab to Denver. Plus, he'll wear Broncos pajamas in public to raise awareness for Denver's Road Home, an organization dedicated to ending homelessness.

Former MMA champ Tito Ortiz has been charged with two counts of DUI ... after crashing his Porsche into a concrete median back in January, TMZ Sports has learned.

The 38-year-old fighter was arrested on January 6th ... when cops say he blew a .12 on the breathalyzer, following the 4am crash on an L.A. freeway.

As we previously reported, Ortiz had been partying at the Playboy Mansion in the hours before the incident.

If convicted, Ortiz faces up to 6 months in jail and a $1,000 fine -- but since it's his first offense, he probably won't do any time. Instead, he'll likely only be sentenced to probation and will be required to complete an alcohol education course.

The TMZ photog crew just got WAY more athletic ... 'cause a bunch of NFL stars just signed on to be TMZ cameramen during Super Bowl week in NYC!!!

It's true ... New York Giants linebacker Mark Herzlich, punter Steve Weatherford and former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh will be hittin' the streets starting tomorrow!

They're gonna be out lookin' for the biggest stars in the city -- cameras in hand -- and whatever they shoot will be posted on the website and featured on our TV shows.