Everybody Gets Serious Again:

It is amazing how things around here seemingly change overnight at this time of year. Two weeks ago, the temperatures were broiling in the mid to high 90’s. Now, the kids have all returned to school, colleges have started a new year, twilight arrives earlier each day and the lightheartedness of summer has left, only to be replaced by the seriousness of September. It’s not even fall, yet it seems like the summer was awhile ago. Yes, it happens every year but it is kind of sad nonetheless. Can’t complain about the weather, though. Well, in the spirit of the “Serious Season”, let’s get down to bid’ness.

It’s Almost Hockey Time…

With September comes the return of the Bruins and training camp. The manner in which the Bruins’ season ended last year is dead and buried. It’s over, so let’s move on, OK? The Bruins held two “rookie” games against the Islanders at the Garden on Wednesday and Thursday and over 25,000 fans showed up for both games. That’s astounding! And people say the Bruins are irrelevant in Boston. Hah! The team received a bit of bad news as it was announced that C Marc Savard is still dealing with post-concussion syndrome and won’t be ready to start camp. He and Tim Thomas were rumored to be traded away during the off-season because the team is in “salary cap hell” but they weren’t moved. The big trade that was made on Draft Day was moving Dennis Wideman and the #15 overall pick to Florida for Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell. With the second overall pick acquired in the Kessel trade, the Bruins chose F Tyler Seguin from Plymouth Whalers and it’ll be interesting to see if he can make the team coming out of camp.

The Bruins are a well-built team and they will contend for a high place in the Eastern Conference this year. Every hockey season brings memorable highs and lows, and this year should be no different. The team has addressed some of their offensive shortcomings from last year and fans have every right to be excited. This year, the B’s will spend the end of camp and beginning of the season in Europe, as the play a couple of exhibitions in Belfast before moving on to Prague, where they will open the regular season with two games against Phoenix.

The Curtain Comes Down:

The Sox began the winding down phase of the season as they wrapped up their final west coast swing with three against the woeful Mariners. It’s nearly time to put away the bats and balls and break out the sticks and pucks. Interest in the Red Sox has basically fallen off a cliff as the public eyes and ears have shifted their focus to football. Maybe folks ought to enjoy these final couple of weeks of baseball as when the snow and cold hits they’ll be bitchin’ for spring.

In Monday night’s opener (9/13), Jon Lester (16-8, 3.26) started against Doug Fister (5-11, 3.84). The manager started three rookies in the outfield, Nava (LF), Kalish (CF) and Reddick (RF). The Sox put a three-spot on the board in the third, as Beltre singled and Lowrie doubled to start things off. Beltre came in the back door on Reddick’s ground out. Nava drove in Lowrie with a double to make it 2-0 and Lars Anderson followed with a double to make it 3-0. While Lester mowed down everyone in sight through the first five, Fister settled down and retired 11 batters in a row. The Mariners finally scratched a run off of Lester in the bottom of the seventh but the Sox put the game out of reach in the eighth when Scutaro walked and Kalish whacked a homer to right. On the play, Ichiro literally climbed atop the fence in right and almost fell into the stands. The man is simply astounding, Lester was through after eight, and had an amazing night. His line was awesome: 8 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 12 K. Bard entered in the ninth and shut down the M’s to put a stamp on this one, a really nice 5-1 win.

On Tuesday night (9/14), Daisuke (9-5, 4.70) was opposed by lefty Luke French (4-5, 3.90). With one out in the bottom of the first, the Mariners pushed across a run as Figgins singled, stole second, Branyan walked and Gutierrez singled to right. Beltre led off the second with a double to left, but was gunned down at the plate by Michael Saunders after trying to score on Ortiz’ opposite field single. No problem, as Lowrie followed with a two-run bomb to left to put the Sox ahead 2-1. Saunders walked and stole second leading off the bottom of the second, but Daisuke came back to strike out two of the next three batters. Scutaro walked leading off the third and moved to second on a wild pitch and later scored on Martinez’ smoking single to left. Ichiro walked and stole second to start the bottom of the third (Varitek’s catching, what else would you expect?) Figgins followed with a bloop hit to second and then Branyan grounded out to second and Ichiro came in the back door to make it 3-2. Figgins tried to steal third, but was gunned down on a good throw by Varitek. Lowrie made it 4-2 leading off the fourth with a homer that barely made it over the wall. Wilson was hit by a pitch leading off the bottom of the fifth and scored on Ichiro’s long double to the gap in left center. Figgins then laid down a perfect bunt that hugged the third base line, putting runners on the corners with nobody out, Branyan then hit a long sacrifice fly to right and Ichiro came in with the tying run. Ichiro singled leading off the seventh and the manager pulled the plug on Daisuke, bringing in Okajima to face Figgins, who sacrificed Ichiro into scoring position. With two outs, Michael Bowden relieved Okajima, and gave up a long double to Gutierrez and Ichiro came in with the go-ahead run. The Sox went back ahead 7-6 with two outs in the eighth as Martinez and Beltre singled and everyone came home on Ortiz’ 30th homer of the year to right. The Sox picked up two more runs in the ninth and came away with another nice win. Enjoy these games, folks. It’s a long winter ahead.

In Wednesday evening’s finale (9/15), Clay Buchholz (15-7, 2.53) went up against former Sox farmhand David Pauley (2-7, 4.39). Buchholz had a bad outing in Oakland last week and was looking to rebound. Yamaico Navarro made a nice leaping stab of Figgins’ line drive in the bottom of the first. Russell Branyan then put the Mariners on top 1-0 when he clocked a fastball down the heart of the plate 10 rows up in the rightfield grandstand. In the bottom of the second, Kotchman reached on an infield hit (the replay showed that Buchholz beat him to the bag) and Lopez doubled down the line in left. Kotchman was picked off at third by Martinez after wandering too far down the third base line. After Saunders walked, Buchholz avoided trouble by getting a couple of ground outs. In the bottom of the third, Martinez threw out Figgins trying to steal second to end the inning. Any Red Sox CS is worthy of mention, as it occurs in roughly 10% of every SB attempt…Beltre tied it in the fourth with a bomb into the second level of the leftfield grandstand. The Sox went up 2-1 in the sixth as Ortiz hit a long double off the wall in right and scored when Nava’s routine grounder to second went through Figgins’ legs. It was really a bad error on Figgins’ part. Reddick then singled to right and Anderson walked, loading the bases. But Navarro struck out…Pauley was finished after six and handed things over to Ryan Rowland-Smith (who immediately ran into trouble). Scutaro led off with a single and Kalish followed with a long ground-rule double to right. Martinez then ripped a double to right that just made it fair, scoring both runners. In the eighth, Scutaro singled, stole second and scored on Kalish’s triple, that took a long, slow roll down the rightfield line. Okajima entered in the bottom of the eighth and predictably struggled, but did not allow any runners to score. Atchison retired the side in order and the Sox came away with the sweep and a winning road trip.

Joe Torre will not return as Dodgers’ manager next year, and that was not surprising considering the messy state of affairs currently associated with the team. Who could blame Torre for not wanting to come back? The two individuals at the center of the ownership dispute are, in the opinion of this address, utterly wretched human beings. Bostonians are well aware of their long-standing local business dealings, and after they “went Hollywood” have watched how they looted the Dodger franchise with contempt. See, you can have all the money in the world, but if you lack basic human decency how would you expect to be viewed by the public? Selig needs to step in subito and direct that the team be sold to an entity that understands that ownership of a major league franchise IS a public trust, not a license to steal. Enough about them; let their train wreck of a divorce entertain others.

As far as Torre is concerned, he’s always been highly respected by Red Sox fans for his managing career with the Yanks. A few years ago, he returned to Fenway after cancer treatment and was greeted by the Fenway crowd with a standing ovation, moving him to tears. He’s 70 now, and has been in OB for 50 years. Maybe he no longer wants a day-to-day role with another ballclub. If he retires as a manager, he will most definitely be enshrined in Cooperstown. Baseball would be the lesser without him.

With Two Weeks Left…Toronto Comes To Town:

Prior to Friday night’s game, the Red Sox inducted their 2010 Hall of Fame class. This year’s inductees were John Valentin, Managers Eddie Kasko and Don Zimmer, outfielders Tommy Harper, and Jimmy Piersall (why did they ever cast “Norman Bates”/Anthony Perkins to play Piersall in “Fear Strikes Out”? Geez, Perkins threw like a girl…). The “memorable moment” that was enshrined was Tom Brunansky’s diving catch in the rightfield corner on October 3, 1990 against the White Sox that sealed the AL East title for the Sox. That was a certainly a play worth memorializing.

In the opener, John Lackey (12-10, 4.45) started against lefty Brett Cecil (12-7, 4.12). After a lovely pregame ceremony honoring the inductees, the Blue Jays went right to work. Lewis and Escobar both singled, putting runners on the corners but Wells hit into a 6-4-3 double play and Lackey escaped. In the bottom of the first, McDonald singled with one out and scored on Martinez’ homer into the Monster Seats. Overbay led off the second with a double to left, and then Aaron Hill was hit on the right forearm with a pitch (and no, it wasn’t a “Jeter”). Lind ripped a double to the right-center gap, scoring both runners and making it a tie ballgame. (Lackey is throwing garbage so far). Things started off badly for Lackey in the fourth, as Escobar singled and stole second. Bautista walked and Wells was hit by a pitch. Overbay followed by ripping a double into the rightfield corner, scoring Escobar and Bautusta. John McDonald then hit a sacrifice fly to left and Wells came in to make it 5-2, Jays. Make that 6-2 Jays: Lind smacked a triple into the rightfield corner and Overbay scored. The manager then made that long walk to the mound looking for the baseball. Michael Bowden entered in relief of Lackey (4.1, 8H, 7ER, 2BB, 3K) and John Buck looped a base hit to right, scoring Lind. In the sixth, Lewis singled, stole second, moved to third on Escobar’s pop single to left and scored on Bowden’s wild pitch. Bautista followed by smashing a bomb into the Monster Seats and Toronto went up 10-2. Rich Hill then relieved Bowden. In the bottom of the sixth, Scutaro led off with a single and McDonald doubled. Martinez knocked in Scutaro with a sacrifice fly and Beltre doubled, scoring McDonald. Lowell then singled to center and Beltre scored to make it 10-5. With two outs in the seventh, Encarnacion singled, Lewis walked and Escobar drove in Encarnacion with a base hit. After Hill and Fox got knocked around, it was time to call for the wily old knuckleballer. In the bottom of the eighth, Nava walked and Martinez hit a two-run homer and it was 11-7. In the bottom of the ninth, Lowrie led off with a ground-rule double and scored on Navarro’s two-out single to right. Nava followed with a double off the wall and Navarro scored to make it 11-9. The Jays went to their closer, Kevin Gregg, to face Martinez. But Victor (“swing and a pop up, sigh”) was out on two pitched and the Jays took the first game of the series. Again, the Sox fall victim to John Lackey and his patented One Bad Inning.

There are now only fifteen games remaining on the schedule of this snake bitten year. On Saturday night, Josh Beckett (5-4, 5.83) got the call against promising young lefty Ricky Romero (12-9, 3.72). With two outs in the top of the first, Jose Bautista hit his 49th homer of the year, a solo shot to give the Jays a quick 1-0 lead. The Sox tied the score in the bottom of the second with base hits as Beltre doubled and Ortiz singled him in. Lowrie followed with a single but Drew hit into a 3-6 force and Hall and Scutaro struck out. Overbay led off the third with a base hit and Lind followed with a ground-rule double, putting Beckett in a jam. John McDonald singled in Overbay to make it 2-0 and then Snider singled to load the bases. Lind doubled leading off the sixth and scored on McDonald’s single. McDonald later scored to make it 4-1, Jays. Beltre doubled and Ortiz walked starting off the bottom of the sixth. A wild pitch moved the runners into scoring position. Lowrie grounded out to third and Beltre came in the back door to make it 4-2. Drew singled in Ortiz to make it 4-3. Romero was finished after six and turned things over to Jason Frasor. Scutaro singled and Beltre walked with two outs, leaving things up to Ortiz. After a pitching change, the Mighty Big Papi whiffed… Okajima pitched a clean eighth and ninth, and it was on to the bottom of the ninth. Kalish singled with one out but was picked off first. What happened next? Martinez tripled…but Beltre grounded out to short and the Sox lost again…awful, just awful.

In Sunday afternoon’s finale, Jon Lester (17-8, 3.17) looked to right the ship against Shaun Marcum (12-7, 3.58). There was probably little or no interest about this game as it was a beautiful, sunny afternoon around these parts and most folks were enjoying the afternoon before settling in for the late kickoff for the Patriots. The Jays loaded the bases with two outs in the third after McDonald singled and McCoy and Escobar reached on back-to-back walks, but Lester was able to get out of the jam when Encarnacion grounded into a 6-4 force. With one out in the bottom of the fourth, Victor Martinez put the Sox on top with a solo shot that wrapped around Pesky’s Pole. The Jays came back in the fifth to load the bases once more with one out as Arencibia walked, and McDonald and McCoy reached on back-to-back singles. Escobar hit into a 5-2 force and Bautista grounded out to third, so that’s two-bases loaded jams from which Lester was able to extricate himself. Usually, that sort of luck tends to wear thin as a game progresses. Lowrie and Hall reached on back-to-back singles to open the bottom of the fifth. Nava followed with a ground-rule double to right, scoring Lowrie and Navarro drove in Hall and Nava with a base hit. Drew followed with a two-run homer, and, just like that, it was 6-0 Sox. Lester was finished after seven (7IP, 4H, 0ER, 4BB, 4K) and turned things over to Atchison and Coello, who both pitched clean innings and the Sox salvaged one game of the series.

Gridiron Time:

Saskatchewan Roughriders Game 11 v. Calgary Stampeders (9/17/10):

Get your seasons straight: September is mid-season in the CFL and early season in the NFL! Prior to a very big showdown against 9-1-0 Calgary, there were a couple of newsworthy items to report. The Riders released Prechae Rodriguez (don’t know why, he was a productive wideout) and placed Dominique Dorsey on IR. There’s now a big hole in the punt/kickoff return game that’ll need to be filled. To that end, Ryan Grice-Mullen was signed by the Riders after having been released by Miami. Hamilton also announced the signing of former Rider standout DE Stevie Baggs to a three-year deal, Baggs was recently let go by the Arizona Cardinals. Sorry to hear that he won’t be returning to the CFL in Green. If Calgary prevails in this game, the 6-4-0 Riders can basically kiss off any chance of winning the CFL West.

On a chilly night (6°C) at Mosaic, the Riders won the toss and elected to receive. Hugh Charles returned the kick to the 35. Durant was able to move the ball to midfield, but Durant’s pass on second down was intercepted by Milt Collins, who returned the ball 54 yards for a touchdown. Ugh, what a way to start. Durant’s pass was intended for Fantuz, but Collins stepped in and snatched the ball away. Starting at their 35, Durant hit Bagg on the left sideline to Calgary’s 50. On second down, Durant went for the downs, but his pass intended for Dressler was incomplete. Dressler appeared to have possession at the 5, but the ball popped out of his hands. The Riders challenged the ruling but it was upheld. Johnson’s punt took a fortuitous bounce and Calgary took over at their 6. Henry Burriss was sacked by Luc Mullinder on first down, and after an incompletion, the Stamps punted away. The Riders started out their next drive at Calgary’s 53, but went two n’ out. Calgary started out at their 5 and Burris was able to connect with Ken-Yon Rambo for a first down. The Stamps were able to move the ball to midfield on a couple of Burris completions to Nik Lewis and an unnecessary roughness penalty against Francis. On second and 7, Burris flipped a short pass to Joffrey Reynolds, who ran it to the 25. From there, the Stamps settled for a 25-yard field goal by Maver to make it 10-0. Starting out again at the 35, Durant scrambled for 23 yards on second down, and on the following play, ran for another as the first quarter ended.

The Riders drive stalled at midfield, but the Stamps conceded Johnson’s punt into the end zone, so it was a 10-1 game early in the second quarter. Durant was not sharp in the early going. On the Stamps’ next possession, John Cornish carried twice up the middle and into Riders’ territory. Riders’ LB Marcus Adams then went down with a leg injury. Murphy then kicked a perfect coffin corner kick, with the ball rolling out of bounds at the 1. Calgary regained possession at their 35, and Burris made a great play, throwing to Reynolds while being grabbed by the Riders’ pass rush. On second down, Burris’ throw on the right sideline was incomplete. From their 40, Durant connected with Fantuz for 36 at Calgary’s 30. Fantuz fumbled the ball but was able to recover. Coach Hufnagel challenged the ruling that the Riders recovered, but was advised that fumble recoveries are not subject to challenge and the Stamps were hit with a delay of game penalty. After an incompletion, Durant was sacked but Calgary’s Anderson was hit with an illegal contact penalty and the Riders were in business at the 8. From there, Wes Cates carried on a direct snap straight up the middle and into the end zone. With Congi’s point after, it was 10-8 Calgary. After the Riders’ touchdown, the Mosaic crowd got very loud, and the defense pressured into a two n’ out. Brent Hawkins went out with what appeared to be a shoulder injury. On first down, Durant struck quickly, as he found Wes Dressler streaking down the right sideline on a corner route for a 77-yard touchdown and the Riders went up 15-10. Dressler had beaten the corner, made one juke and he was off to the races. Johnson’s kickoff went into the end zone and the Riders picked up the single. On Calgary’s next possession, the Riders’ Tad Kornegay was hit with a pass interference penalty on Romby Bryant, giving the Stamps the ball inside the 10. From there, Cornish carried to the 1. Without Hawkins and Adams, the Riders’ goal line stand would be seriously tested. Cornish went up the middle on first down and was stopped. Drew Tate replaced Burris in the short-yardage package on second down and pushed in for the score. With the point after, the Stamps went back on top, 17-16. Hugh Charles returned the ensuing kickoff to the 32, but the drive went two n’ out. In the final minute, Burris was able to move the Stamps to midfield. From there, Burris hit Rambo at the 28 and, as time expired, Rob Maver knocked in a chip shot to give Calgary a 20-16 lead at the half.

Calgary started off the second half with good field position at the 40. Shomari Williams made a nice tackle on first down and the Stamps went two n’ out on their opening drive. The Riders were able to move the ball to the 35 on a nice catch by Fantuz, but a holding penalty pushed the ball back and Johnson punted away. On first down, the Riders’ Daniel Francis suffered an apparent leg injury while trying to tackle Nik Lewis, who hauled in a pass from Burris over the middle with four players trying to haul him down. The Riders started off their next drive deep in the hole at the 3. On second and 4, Durant connected with Cates on a dump off to the 23. Gary Koch made his first Rider reception out to the 34, but Durant was heavily pressured and nearly sacked, so Johnson punted away. The Riders had good coverage and Calgary started out at the 35. On second down, Burris was intercepted by James Patrick on a shoe-top catch. It sure looked like the ball hit the turf first and the ruling was challenged by Hufnagel. On review, the call was overturned and the Stamps punted away. Dressler had a great return into Calgary territory, but a holding call moved the ball back to the 30. Durant immediately connected with Fantuz at the 45. On second-and-10, Durant lofted a pass to the little-used veteran Jason Clermont at the 30. From there, Hugh Charles went off left tackle and to the house. With the point after, the Riders went ahead 23-20. Deon Murphy returned Johnson’s kick to the 37. On second and 10, Burris hit Bryant on the right sideline into Riders’ territory and then Reynolds took it up the gut to the 30. From there, Burris flipped a pass under heavy pressure to Cornish, who broke several tackles and into the end zone, giving the Stamps a 27-23 lead. You could’ve heard a pin drop at Mosaic after that. Charles was able to return the ensuing kickoff to the 35. On second and five, Durant found Fantuz on the right sideline and he raced 57 yards down to the Stamps’ 16 as the quarter came to a close.

Durant fumbled the snap on first down and the Riders made it as far as Calgary’s 10, so they settled for a short field goal from Congi to make it 27-26. Burris was able to move the ball into Riders’ territory before he connected with Rambo on a deep route at the 6. A (very stupid) penalty against the Riders moved the ball to the 3, where Reynolds carried into the end zone and the Stamps went ahead 34-26. Durant connected with Fantuz over the middle to the 45. On the following play, Cates was stripped of the ball and fumbled. Calgary recovered and Burris was able to move the ball to the Riders’ 23 on a pass completion and run by Cornish. From there, Maver knocked in a field goal to make it 37-26, Stamps…and time was running short. On first down, an off-sides call negated a first down. On third and 1 with five minutes on the clock, Durant found Fantuz breaking for the post, wide open and all alone, 55 yard touchdown. The Riders went for two and succeeded, making it 37-34 with 4:32 left on the clock. From the 20, Burris connected with Lewis for 7. On second down, Burris’ pass intended for Cote was broken up and the Stamps had to punt away. At the three-minute warning, Durant had found Dressler over the middle and he rolled down to the Stamps’ 40. On second down, Durant had trouble picking up the snap in the shotgun, and looked like he had tons of room to run for the first down, but inexplicably took a shot into the end zone but his pass was incomplete. Congi then kicked a 44-yard field goal to tie the score. The Stamps went two n’ out and punted away, with the Riders taking over at their 35 with 1:24 left. On first down, Fantuz picked up 10 on a first down. On first down, Durant went to Fantuz again for 8, he fumbled but was ruled down by contact. Durant then scrambled off left tackle for 29 yards, fumbled but was ruled down by contact at the 25. What on earth did Coach Miller just do???? The Riders had a chance for a makeable field goal by Congi but elected to go for the single by bringing in the punting unit. Johnson’s punt was returned out of the end zone and the game went to overtime.

The Riders had first go in overtime. Durant hit Clermont from the 35 to the 10 and a face mask penalty put the ball on the 5. From there, Cates carried in to make it 43-37, but Anderson broke up the two-point pass conversion attempt. It was then Calgary’s turn. Burris connected with Rambo on the right at the 9. Burris was rushed heavily on first down and his pass was incomplete. On second down, the Riders stopped Reynolds at the three. On third down, the Riders brought the house down on Burris, who tried to hit Lewis in the end zone but Lewis stumbled and the pass fell incomplete. The Riders won their second OT game of the season, 43-37. Coach Miller is one lucky dog. If the Riders somehow lost this game based on his dubious decision to punt at the end of regulation, there would be a lot of folks in the Prairies screaming for his head.

UFL: Hartford Colonials v. Sacramento Mountain Lions (9/18/10):

The UFL season kicked off on Saturday as Hartford played host to Sacramento in their first game at UConn’s Rentschler Field. The UFL is a five-team league that started out somewhat anonymously last year. Who knows what this entity will eventually become. Provided something’s not illegal, immoral or fattening, we’ll give anything a chance. The AFL started out a lot like this, then again, so didn’t the WFL and USFL. This league had none of the hype as did the other failed leagues. So, we’ll see. There were a lot of well-known former NFL faces on both teams as Sacramento is coached by Denny Green and quarterbacked by Daunte Culpepper. They also feature the son of Denzel Washington, who was looking on from the Sacramento sideline. Hartford is coached by Chris Palmer, who was once a highly regarded assistant with the Patriots during the Bledsoe Era. The stadium was virtually empty at kickoff. Hartford came out in blue and gold while Sacramento wore copper, white and black. It must be humbling for a player of Culpepper’s stature to be playing like this in an empty venue. Sacramento went three and out on their opening drive. Hartford is led by castoff quarterback Josh McCown. On the Colonials’ first possession, they picked up a couple of first down and moved the ball to Sacramento’s 25 before fumbling the ball away. A holding penalty set the ball back to the 25, and Culpepper’s long third down pass down the right sideline was incomplete. After the punt, the Colonials set up shop at midfield. On first down, McCown completed a long pass to Chery, who went out of bounds at the 5. On third and goal, McCown hit Markee White with a low pass in the end zone, as White dove and reached out for the ball and brought it in. With the point after, it was 7-0, Colonials. Sacramento was able to move the ball out to midfield before Culpepper’s pass intended for Darrell Strong was broken up. On the Colonials’ next series, McCown stepped out in favor of Ryan Perrilloux, formerly of Jacksonville State. They went three n’ out and Sacramento returned the ball to the 40. Culpepper again had difficulty locating his targets with accuracy and the Mountain Lions were forced to punt away. McCown took over at quarterback again. Andre Dixon went off right tackle to the 30 and a first down. At the end of the quarter, the Colonials had moved the ball into Sacramento’s side of the field and had some success running the football.

Moving into the second quarter, McCown hit Carter on a sideline route down to the 25. Andre Dixon then banged inside down to the 12. On third down, McCown was sacked back at the 20, so the Colonials settled for a field goal from Melhaff to make it 10-0. After Sacramento punted away, McCown hit Jason Chery with a 59-yard touchdown pass down the left sideline and the Colonials went up 17-0. On Sacramento’s next possession, Marshall McDuffie blocked a punt and the Colonials took over at the Mountain Lions’ 20. Once more, Perriloux came on for McCown and scrambled down the left sideline to the 4. Sacramento stuffed three rush attempts so the Colonials settled for a 20-yard for a 20-yard field goal by Melhoff to make it 20-0, Hartford. Late in the first half, Culpepper’s long pass was intercepted by BC’s Ryan Glasper as the Mountain Lions were unable to mount any offensive attack. It’s hard to see a player who was at the top of the NFL food chain only a few years ago playing so poorly.

Moving into the third quarter, on the Colonials’ first possession, Lorenzo Booker took a screen pass from McCown and streaked 80 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown. The rout was on at 27-0. Late in the quarter, Culpepper was able to bring the Sacramento offense to the Colonials’ 4 but took three shots into the end zone and failed, settling for a chip shot field goal to make it 27-3. Early in the fourth quarter, Culpepper hit Ross on the screen and Ross carried down to the 16. On second-and-goal, Culpepper found Ross in the left corner of the end zone for the touchdown. With the point after, it was 27-10. On the Colonials’ next possession, they ground the ball into the dirt and effectively worked the clock down to the end.

In the end, the Colonials came away with a pretty convincing 27-10. There was nothing new or revolutionary about the UFL game, but both lines hit each other really hard. Colonials’ DT Maurice Fountain really stood out, especially against the run. Coach Palmer received the obligatory Gatorade shower from his players and what few fans attended the game went away happy.

Harvard Crimson Game 1 v. Holy Cross (9/18/10):

10 Saturdays
10,000 Men
1 Team

The 137th season of Harvard football kicked off on Saturday night at the Stadium as they faced their Colonial League rivals from Worcester. This will be the 64th time that the Crimson and Crusaders have met. Last year, The Cross beat Harvard 27-20 at home and there is no love lost between the teams. The Crusaders won the toss and elected to defer until the second half. Andrew Hatch is Coach Murphy’s starting quarterback this year and led the Crimson on their opening drive all the way to HC’s 5 before settling for a 26-yard field goal by David Mothander. After a mixup on HC’s first punt, the Crimson started their next drive at the HC 26. On third and long, Hatch scrambled down at the HC 14. Gino Gordon was able to pick up a key first down at the 4. From there, Gordon carried up the middle for a touchdown. With the point after, the Crimson went up 10-0. HC’s Ryan Taggart found Schneider at the 35 to pick up the Crusaders’ initial first down as the quarter came to an end.

Taggart was unsuccessful moving the ball further, and the Crusaders’ punt took a favorable bounce down to Harvard’s 17. Hatch was able to connect with Adam Chrissis up to the 34. On second down, Hatch took on a quarterback draw up to the 44. On third and 3 at the HC 49, Gino Gordon ripped off right tackle to the 25. From there, Hatch hit Marco Ianuzzi in the end zone for the touchdown. With the point after, Harvard went up 17-0. The Crusaders started out their next drive at the 29, but Taggart was sacked by Josue Ortiz for a 10-yard loss and they had to punt away. The Crimson then started out at the 35. On third and five from the 41, Hatch picked up a first down on the draw, but a holding call negated the play. On the next play, Hatch found Levi Richards on the left sideline and he ran it down to the HC 16. On second down Hatch took it down to the five. The drive stalled and the Crimson had to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Mothander to make it 20-0. The Crusaders started out their next drive with 1:30 left on the clock. Taggart carried up to the 41. On third down, Harvard’s Dan Minamide was flagged for pass interference, setting up the Crusaders at the 45. Taggart was then able to tuck and run down to the 23. From there, the Crimson’s Alex Gedeon leaped and picked off Taggart’s pass at the 10. Hatch took a knee and the Crimson went into the locker room with a big lead.

Holy Cross started out their opening drive at the 35, as Alex Johnson had a decent return of the kick. After picking up a quick first down, the drive stalled as Taggart was replaced by Kevin Watson. They went for it on fourth-and-two but failed and HC turned it over on downs at midfield. Hatch was sacked on the Crimson’s next possession and they had to punt away. Freddie Santana had a terrific punt return, bringing the ball back to the 45. Sam Auffant carried up the gut to Harvard’s 38. After moving the ball to the 30, the Crusaders had to attempt another fourth down attempt, but were unable to convert again as Watson’s scramble fell just short. On first down, Hatch connected with Richards at the 45. Chris Lorditch made his first catch of the game for another first down. Hatch then carried down to the 32. From there, Trevor Scales carried down to the HC 18 on third down. The Crimson stuck to the ground, and on third and goal from the 7, Hatch, rolling to the right, found Chris Lorditch in the end zone. With the point after, the Crimson went up 27-0. After the Crusaders went three n’ out, the Crimson started out at their 45. As the quarter came to an end, the Crimson had moved the ball into HC territory at the 22.

With fourth down and two, the Crimson decided to go for it but were unsuccessful. Watson was able to move the Crusaders’ offense to the 40, but eventually turned the ball over on downs. On Harvard’s next possession, Hatch found Lorditch on a long 35-yard touchdown pass and the Crimson went up 34-0. Coach Murphy elected to begin bringing in second-unit players on defense. Watson was intercepted on the Crusaders’ next possession and it was officially garbage time. On the Crusaders’ last possession, Watson moved the offense down field and ultimately connected with Santana on a 25-yard pass play to make it 34-6. The point after failed and from there, the Crimson ran out the clock. It was a tremendous season opener for the Crimson.

Illegitimum Non Carborundum.

To The Pitch:

Piacenza Match 4 at Grosseto (9/18/10):

Last-place Piacenza took their show on the road, this time to Grosseto at Carlo Zecchini. They played a good match, yet ultimately fell to defeat 1-0 on Leandro Vitiello’s goal in the 86th. They simply have to work harder to grab that first win.

Wrexham Match 9 at Kettering Town (9/18/10):

On Saturday, Dragons hit the road for a match with Kettering Town at Elgood's Brewery Arena. Despite the 1-1 final, it was a fairly wide open match as both sides put seven shots on frame and there were an abundance of scoring opportunities. Early on, Wrexham’s Andrew Morrell had a shot directly in front of Nathan Abbey that was blocked. KT’s Jamie Tolley came right back and fired a shot on goal that missed the net. A couple of minutes later, KT’s Ian Roper put a shot on goal directly out front that Scott Shearer snatched away. In the 11th, Andre Boucaud’s cross was stolen away by Shearer. A minute later’s Brett Solkhon’s header off of Marcus Kelly’s cross went just wide. Shearer was called upon to make another nice save off of Jean-Paul Marna’s cross in the 14th. Kelly came back with a nice drive from the top of the box in the 16th that missed right. In the 28th, Ashley Westwood’s header off of Tommy Jaszczun’s cross was saved by Shearer. In the 29th, Morrell had a great header from Ashton’s cross that Abbey stopped, but KT’s James Dance fired on one Wrexham’s goal moments later that went wide. In the 37th, Brett Solkhon’s header coming off of Tommy Jaszczun’s corner was blocked by Dean Keates. Late in the half, Dragons put a lot of heat in KT’s end and it paid off. Andrew Mangan rocked a shot in the 42nd that went over the bar. A minute later, Keates grabbed Gareth Taylor’s pass from the right penalty area and drove a left-footed shot from about 12 yards out into the goal. Just before the end of the half, Jay Harris put a shot on goal that was scooped by Abbey.

Moving into the second half, Harris put another shot on goal that Abbey blocked. Keates came right back with a cross that Abbey leaped to save. In the 57th, KT’s Iyseden Christie had a good shot coming off of Jaszczun’s corner that Shearer turned around the post. On the ensuing corner, Jaszczun had a dangerous chance that Shearer knocked away. In the 61st, KT’s Jean-Paul Marna was booked for a rough tackle on Keates. Marna then rocked a shot over the bar a few minutes later. In the 69th, Jaszczun’s dangerous corner was knocked away by Shearer, and also had another tricky corner that was knocked away by Shearer in the 73rd. Nathaniel Knight-Percival then came on for Gareth Taylor a minute later. Harris went down with a knock in the 81st and was replaced by Christian Smith. KT was steadily applying pressure in Wrexham’s end when Marvin Andrews dumped Christie breaking into the box and the referee called a penalty. Marna was given the honors and he equalized on a blast that went low left corner. Wrexham tried to pull ahead as Morrell’s corner from Mangan’s cross went wide left. In the late going, Marna put two more shots on goal, one that went over the bar and the other that was stopped by Shearer. On the whole, Dragons played well, matching KT chance for chance, it was just a shame that they failed to come up with the three points as a result of a late penalty kick.

New England Revolution Match 24 at Colorado Rapids (9/18/10):

The 7-13-3-24 Revs traveled to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City to face the 9-7-7-34 Rapids. Colorado uses its altitude advantage to gas the opposition early in matches by coming out with a high tempo. The Rapids’ Brian Mullan put a shot on goal in the 4th that was stopped by Reis. The Rapids scored a minute later as Omar Cummings broke in alone on a pass from Jamie Smith and tucked the ball into the far right corner. Cummings just blew past a Revs’ defender, who literally fell over trying to catch him. The Revs were able to regain their composure and avoided any further defensive lapses, but still had difficulty generating any offensive chances. On the 23rd, Conor Casey rocked a shot that hit the left post. Phelan took a nasty head knock in the 27th while going up for a ball with Pablo Mastroeni. Casey put Rapids up 2-0 in the 35th, as he took a pass from Cummimgs in the left side of the box and Reis came out (way too far) to defend, leaving the entire right side of the goal open. Cummings came back a few minutes later and rocked one on goal that Reis smartly turned aside. Late in the half, Revs mounted a feeble challenge, but the Rapids’ defenders didn’t allow anything close to the goal. Cummings owned the Revs in that half.

The Rapids picked up pretty much where they left off, as they shut down the Revs on every advance in the early going. In the 57th, Revs had their first real opportunity of the match as Marko Perovic put a stinging shot on goal that Matt Pickens scrambled to retrieve. At the hour mark, Revs made a couple of changes as Jason Griffiths came on for Pat Phelan and Kenny Mansally entered for Chris Tierney. Nyassi put a shot on Pickens in the 64th that was tricky. In the 65th, Reis made a fabulous diving stop of Casey’s shot that was ticketed for the left corner. Sinovic had a rough collision with Cummings, took the worst of it, yet ended up getting booked. Cummings departed in the 71st as he was gassed. He had a great night out there for Colorado tonight. Macoumba Kandji broke into the box alone in the 73rd, but his shot had no steam and was easily picked by Reis. Casey left in the 75th and Dube replaced Sinovic in the 77th. In the 78th, Mansally broke with the ball down the left flank, but his drive went just wide of the far post. Pickens took no chances as he leaped after the ball. In the 80th, former Rev Jeff Larentowicz scorched a drive that Reis leaped after and tipped over the bar. Moments later, Reis made another sparkling stop of Larentowicz’ second chance. In the 83rd, no such luck as another former Rev, Wells Thompson, broke in alone in the box and beat Gibbs one-on-one and knocked the ball behind Reis. Mansally was shaken up a few minutes later diving after a ball at midfield but carried on. Nyassi had a chance in the 88th, but his kick from inside the box went way over the bar. Coach Nicol appeared to be one unhappy camper at the end, and who could blame him? There is no, nada, zero offensive creativity at all with this team. They stink.