Author: backinphilly

Brian Dawkins-An Eagle Forever

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Last week, Brian Dawkins‘ number 20 was retired by the Philadelphia Eagles during their game against the New York Giants on Sunday night Football. As many of my readers may recall, my role model has been Brian Dawkins throughout my entire life. He’s the number one reason I play football. He has acted as someone that I strive to be everyday. This past Sunday was the final act in Dawk’s storied career.

The Friday before the game, my cousin went to Lincoln Financial Field to join in the celebration with the rest of the Eagles personnel. The team, coaches and alum were celebrating Dawkins’ career and my cousin decided that he wanted to get involved. While not to the extent of myself, my cousin also has a strong admiration of “Weapon X”.

My cousin then made his move and did something that I will always appreciate and never forget. He decided to surprise me by getting Dawk to call my cell phone and talk to me. I almost had my chance.

EXCEPT I WAS AT FOOTBALL PRACTICE!!!!

However, Dawk left a voicemail that I consider almost better. I can never replay a conversation that I have over the phone, but I can always replay the voicemail. He didn’t even have to say too much. He just told me to “Make sure I ball out every play”. For those that don’t know, “ball out” means to play every play like it’s your last. I’ve been living that way since day 1 of my football career, and Dawk’s words have resonated throughout my mind, body, heart and soul since the first Eagles game I ever went to.

That voicemail has meant the world to me. I have played it every night since I’ve received it before I go to bed. Finally, I have a piece of the Wolverine that I can share with everyone.

Eagles-Giants/Don’t get much better!

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Well that was really disgusting.

Honestly, I was very concerned about this game going in. The Eagles and Giants squared off tonight in an epic battle for the division. Man, it really wasn’t pretty.

The entire first half was scoreless until the 2 minute warning where Michael Vick connected with DeSean Jackson for a touchdown pass. Then the Giants quickly made their way down the field to notch a field goal of their own.

7-3 at the half. Advantage Eagles.

Fast forward to the last 15 seconds, the Eagles could have completely screwed themselves out of a victory.

But they didn’t.

Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes lined up for a game-winning field goal. The score is 19-17 and Tynes has a 54 yard kick to give the Giants the W.

He misses wide! Game over! Eagles win!….NO!!!!!!

There is a popular occurrence in the NFL known as “Icing the Kicker”. This act is when a head coach calls a timeout right before a kicker is about to make his kick. However, the timeout is used exactly as the long snapper snaps the ball to the holder. The kicker will then take the kick, yet it will not count.

Unfortunetly, Mr. Fatass…i mean Reid gave Tynes a second shot.

Thank God Tynes screwed it up again. This time, he didn’t put enough into the kick, and it fell about 3 yards short.

This time, the Eagles really did win.

I’m not going to go into a lot of detail about this one. There weren’t a lot of stats that really stood out to me.

I’ll explain more next week. I’m just freaking out that Tynes sucks. That’s all!

Next post, I’m going to discuss something completely amazing. Brian Dawkins is finally gone, and he deserves his own post. Till next time, I’m going to do Spanish.

Adios!

Lee Vining Day 2-Game Day

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Today, we woke up to our pregame breakfast. First off, this consisted of a 4 pound slab of bacon (purchased from the Mahogany Smoked Meats Co.).

You have never seen a group of guys go this wild for meat.

With the bacon, we made sausages, eggs cooked with the bacon grease, potatoes and onions cooked with bacon grease, and threw it all into breakfast burritos. Clearly, there was salsa and cheese involved. But it was meat-tastic.

After breakfast, we relaxed and either slept or went into the freezing cold river for a nice wake up dip. We then gathered to elect team captains while getting game gear ready to go.

Each player had to vote for three players that they think displayed the greatest form of leadership. Although we only planned on having three captains, the vote was so close that the coaches added a fourth. The result was John Olivo, Cody Triggs, Grant Spencer and Min Ung Choi.

We checked our gear one last time before loading up into the vans and blasting pump up music. We all got into our own zones, and prepared ourselves for battle.

We arrived to the field with one goal in mind: Win. We showed up an hour prior to kickoff, and began our warmups. The captains led the team in their stretches and agility workouts, and then broke up into individual position drills.

The whistles blew, and the starters took the field to compete in what very well may be the greatest 48 minutes in OVS history.Read More »

Lee Vining: DAY 1

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The OVS football team traveled to Lee Vining for the team’s first football game of the season. For those that are completely unaware of how far Lee Vining actually is from Ojai, the team needed to camp out overnight before reaching Lee Vining. Tinnemaha Creek was the stop for the team the first night, which was Thursday. We pulled in at about 10 PM and unpacked for the night. We relaxed and slept before we set off on Friday morning for Lee Vining.

Before leaving, we did a walkthrough of our plays for the game at Tinnemaha Creek. We got our work done and packed back up. We got on the road and moved on to our final destination.

Lee Vining is a very small town, but we aren’t here to sight-see. We came to do some business, and we plan on doing just that. With another practice session in the afternoon, we go into our game confident that we will be at our best. The game is tomorrow (Saturday) at 1 PM.

On to more miscellaneous things!!!

Let’s talk about the trip up here. There was music blasting and tons of inside jokes that I’m sure we are never going to forget. At our campsite, food is never an issue. Not only do we have a lot to eat, but we have a lot of guys that LOVE to eat. What do you expect from a bunch of crazed football players?

As I write this update, we are cooking a rather large pre-game dinner.

How could you say no to a meal like this?

At the campsites, we are finding ways to stay occupied. When we aren’t exploring or practicing, we are having a good ol’ time with the boys. Some can be seen off in the distance learning how to throw a ball properly, others are off wandering in to the great never ending creek, building wooden fishing rods with hooks (most likely infected with tetanus), or building makeshift fish traps. With so much to explore and so many unruly teenage boys always expect the unexpected.

The end of this story ends with two of the coolest guys around sitting at a gas station/restaurant/convenience store/bar writing a blog using internet off of an iPhone’s hotspot while Mr. Floyd and Mr. Wick just sit and watch us type away to entertain all of you readers, no matter where you may be.

John “The Honey Badger” Olivo and Keaton “That Guy” Shiffman signing off on night one in Lee Vining. Check for more blog posts to see if mama and baby bear left us alone tonight.

Lives are at stake here. Please send help (just kidding).

What am I gonna say this time?-Worst Person 23 and 24

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This is going to be more of just me talking but I’m gonna throw a worst person in there too for a little bit. But there’s a lot I wanna talk about.

First off, for anyone that plays fantasy football, I want to advise against one thing for any league you do in the future. Try to avoid family members. It just never ends well. I’m in a league that is only my family and it’s really been something. I’m going to offer a few nonexistent yet hilarious “awards” today.

First award goes to the best sleeper draft pick. A sleeper is a player that no one really thought was going to do that great but had a lot of potential. This player wasn’t highly sought after during the draft, but was stilled picked up. Usually sleepers are taken with late picks like the 10th or 11th round. This year, my mother of all people decided to pick up the biggest sleeper in the 4th round.

That player is Reggie Bush.

I’ll be honest. My mother was talking about drafting Reggie Bush the whole time. I’ll also tell you that if I got to the 8th round and he was still there, I was taking him. With the exception of my mother and I, no one saw his potential on a Dolphins team with no other weapons. My only issue with this is that 1) I’m playing against my mother this week and 2) she took him WAAAAY too early and missed out on bigger name players. However, that’s coming from someone that is 1-1 after the first two weeks. She’s 2-0.Read More »

NFL week 2 recap-A reflection on a year ago

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This time last year, the Eagles were 1-1, after beating the Rams in their first week and losing to the Falcons a week later. People were beginning to question just how good the “Dream Team” was. This year, we have a different situation. The Eagles BARELY stole a win in week 1 by beating the Browns 17-16. This week, they had to deal with the Ravens, and the Eagles needed to step it up in order to beat the Ravens. Turnovers were once again an issue, as Michael Vick threw two interceptions (only one was his fault, the other was a tipped pass that should have been caught).

Before I continue about the Ravens-Eagles game, I want to point out my rational behind stating that Vick is only accountable for a certain number of interceptions. When the ball leaves his hand, if it hits his receiver first, I expect it to be either caught or fall incomplete. But if the receiver has good enough contact with the ball, the interception should not be on Vick. My one exception is the fact that Vick throws with such an extreme amount of velocity. It must be hard catching that ball.

Anyway back to the game. The Eagles were dropping like flies. Jeremy Maclin, Jason Kelce and King Dunlap all dealt with injuries. Maclin aggravated his hip pointer from week 1, and Kelce is likely lost for season with a torn MCL and partially torn ACL. Dunlap (who I have no sympathy for) apparently strained his hamstring. Quite frankly, I could care less about King Dunlap. Kelce and Mac are tough losses.

At halftime, 17-7 Ravens. The air was taken out of the stadium and spirits suffered.

That is…until DeMeco Ryans intercepted Joe Flacco.

A turnover can go a long way, and this time, it went for a touchdown. The Eagles were rallying.

We go inside the two minute warning. Eagles down 23-17. They need a touchdown to take the lead. They’re close to midfield, and Michael Vick showed why he’s an elite quarterback.

He chucks the ball down the field to tight end Clay Harbor (who caught the winning touchdown pass a week before in Cleveland) and gets them down inside the Ravens five yard line.

1st and goal the Eagles rush from the 3 yard line to the 1.

2nd and goal, the Eagles give everyone a heart attack by sending Vick on a pass play. He was being rushed by star defensive end Haloti Ngata, and almost fumbled the ball. However, he was able to throw it away.

3rd and goal, the prayers were answered. Vick decided to run through everyone into the end zone.

Only one problem remained. The Eagles, now up 24-23, needed to hold the Ravens in check with just less then 2 minutes remaining. A lot can happen in 2 minutes.

1:48 left in the game, Ravens at their own 21. Anyone that has followed the NFL like I have can remember last season. When it came down to close games, the Eagles defense failed to hold onto the lead, and usually cost the team the game.

Not today.

Today, Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Brandon Boykin, Mychael Kendricks, Trent Cole, Jason Babin, Cullen Jenkins, Derek Landri, Fletcher Cox, and DEMECO RYANS shut down the Ravens.

It wasn’t pretty however.

On 3rd down, Nnamdi played an incredible dose of coverage to keep the ball away from Ed Dickson of the Ravens. It looked completely legal, and yet was called illegal contact. That gave the Ravens a fresh set of downs. But in the end, it wouldn’t matter. The defense refused to budge. They forced the Ravens into a 4th down and 2 yards to go situation, and forced Flacco to overthrow star running back Ray Rice.

The stadium has never been louder. I’ve been to a lot of Eagles game, and I can’t remember one being much louder than that.

Now let’s break down one very funny play. Enter BRENT CELEK!

The tight end accounted for more than 150 yards of total offense, and capped off his day with a hurdle over All-Pro and future Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed.

Leap Frog!!

Coaches always teach players to stay low when engaging a tackle. They also tell you to keep your head up.

Ed Reed simply whiffed. But man was it funny!

The Eagles next week travel to Arizona, where they will take on a Cardinals team fresh off an upset over the New England Patriots. The Cardinals have showcased a relatively strong defense in the first two weeks, and the Eagles may have their work cut out for them. These two squads played against each other last season, and the Eagles fell in the minute.

There are two things that I’m very excited about going into this matchup.

Number one is seeing if Juan Castillo uses Nnamdi correctly this year against Larry Fitzgerald. If they stay 1-on-1 all day, that’s gunna be a very interesting duel.

Number two is that last year, the Cardinals used John Skelton as their quarterback.

This year, they may be forced to use Kevin Kolb, the former Eagle.

Last year, the Eagles traded Kolb to Arizona for Cromartie and a 2nd round pick that turned out to be Mychael Kendricks. Needless to say, the Eagles ended up winning that trade.

Maybe Babin and Cole can break Kolb.

Worst Person 22-Jay Cutler

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This is brand new, and I’m talking a few minutes. The Bears and Packers faced off this evening in a battle of epic proportions. The teams looked ready and raring to go after last week. The Packers were beat last week, but that just got them more ready. The Bears had a great game last week using the power of Jay Cutler‘s arm to hurl the ball down field to Brandon Marshall. This was supposed to be a great matchup.

One problem though.

Jay. Cutler. SUCKS!!!!

What’s wrong? Did I hurt your feelings? Dude, you don’t know pain until you’ve been sacked by Clay Matthews.

Oh wait. THAT HAPPENED 2.5 TIMES TONIGHT!!! (For those that don’t know, when you combine with another player for a sack, you get .5)

Scary, huh? Well Mr. Cutler, that’s no excuse to ALSO throw FOUR interceptions. Ya, the Pack have a solid passing defense. But you’re supposed to be an elite quarterback. My cousin was fooled this week by ESPN to play Cutler instead of Peyton Manning for his fantasy team. Cutler would have ended up with negative points had it not been for a late touchdown.

Jay, I never believed in you. I don’t know why coaches and analysts keep giving you the BOTD. I see right through all that bad passing. You can’t blame Marshall. You had him in Denver and now you got him again. You can’t blame your running back. He got hurt. You CAN blame your line. Yes, they played poorly. But that doesn’t happen every game. You have games like this all too frequently.

You know, come to think of it, maybe I shouldn’t have made Jay Cutler the worst person.

Maybe I should’ve given the honor to my cousin for drafting the useless “gunslinger.”

WELCOME BACK WORLD!!!-Worst Person #21-New York Jets

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Well Dang its been a while. Tons of time has passed. Summer came and went and here I am back at school and everyone has that look of excitement to begin the new school year. To start us off on the right foot, I’m bringing back everyone’s favorite series, “The Worst person in sports”. Whether it be a team, owner or player, there’s always some sense of athletic mediocrity. This year, we will start with the New York Jets.

There’s a lot I can say. I never addressed it last year but Tim Tebow going to New York was just dumb. There was no reason. I thought Mark Sanchez was quite overrated, yes. But Tebow is NOT an upgrade. And that’s only the beginning.

In the preseason the Jets did not score a touchdown until their final game. The funniest part? The quarterback that threw for the touchdown was Greg McIlroy. That’s gotta be embarrassing.

Now a little recap of…MY EAGLES WINNING THE SEASON OPENER TO…….cleveland. HAHAHAHAHAHA

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Wow really?

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Well, the first four games of the Stanley Cup finals did not go as planned. This was gunna be a far more exciting series but unfortunately, the Kings had other ideas.

The Kings had a 3-0 series lead over the Devils going into tonight’s game. Thankfully, the Devils were able to win game 4, and we get at least one more hockey game. That’s good since I’m not ready to stop watching hockey yet. It’s incredible.

Now, as I am a die-hard Devils fan, I’d like to share my thoughts on the series so far. I have nothing good to say about the Devils really. We played strong games for the first two and arguably the worst game I’ve ever seen in game 3. 1 and 2 ended in overtime heartbreak, and really, the emotions of fans everywhere are simply crushed. I love the Devils, but I’m not expecting the Cup will return to New Jersey.

I will leave you all with this, as we close out the year of blogging. Jonathan Quick is the sole reason, if not a huge reason that the Kings are as strong as they are. He has stopped some very wild scoring chances and he only allowed two goals through the first three games, including one that was an own goal off of a defender.

Well, depending on whether or not I decide to blog actively this summer, I will bid you farewell for now. I hope that you will all remember my numerous rants on awful athletes and my love for Philadelphia.

Stanley CUP!!!!! I WAS RIGHT!!!!

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Well, I called it. My team, the New Jersey Devils have taken down the New York Rangers and have secured their spot in the Stanley Cup Finals against the Los Angeles Kings. This has supreme potential to be one of the most exciting and nail-biting series in the history of the NHL. I’m gonna tell you why.

1. The Goalies-Martin Brodeur and Jonathan Quick are going to square off against each other, which usually isn’t a marquee matchup. Well, I’ll rephrase that. It will always be marquee. However, during the season, this wasn’t a matchup that was always seen. The Devils and Kings rarely play each other. These two teams are fairly unknown to each other.

2. The Defense-Offense mismatch-The Devils have flashed some brutal offense this postseason. They’ve been firing on all cylinders and have kept defenses on their toes. Personally, I believe the Devils could have easily exploited Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers had they not been such superior shot blockers. However, the Kings’ defense is no easier. While they are not supreme shot blockers, they are fundamentally gifted. Players like Drew Doughty lead the defensive unit of the Kings. This will be a showdown.

3. Sheer Power-Both teams can hit. That’s no secret. Both powerplay units are above average, as are each team’s penalty kill units. The teams should still try to keep the hits under control.

This is going to be an astounding matchup. I predicted this matchup before the second round. I can’t wait to watch these games. It’s going to be something special.