I was a little surprised to find myself writing a hockey story and the consecutive words Red Lion Christian Lions. First of all, my mane man, what is a red lion? I thought lions were that brownish-tan color and they smelled bad like an old factory in an urban neighborhood.
And to be a Christian Lion is a bit of the Stockholm syndrome - don’t you know that’s where you identify with your persecutor? “It’s time for me to do some chomping!”
The Red Lion Christian Lions have been up and running for 28 years and currently their football team is 5-0 after beating Princeton Day School 55-7. Hey Cape, get Princeton Day on the schedule for a night game?
ENVISION SUCCESS! ANTICIPATE CATASTROPHE! - I love the Cape volleyball girls. They are athletic and tough with great team chemistry, but why did they have to mess up my story by not closing out Caesar Rodney last Tuesday when they had the Riders halfway buried in wet sand, winning 13-10 just two points from victory in the deciding game five?
I have threatened to write the manual for athletes and coaches titled “Getting Home,” and it’s the place where almost meets not quite. Cape knows they messed up; they know that perhaps they were not on the verge of an upset but were, in fact, the better team.
Unforced errors are mostly mental and both teams seemed intent on bumping the ball into the net on serves or out of bounds on dramatic would-be kill shots.
“Keep that baby in play,” my grandmother used to say, passing off the newest infant back to its mother.
But seriously, an ace off serve or a kill shot isn’t necessary leading by three and only needing two to win. Let the other guys make the mistakes. Get home! Get the win!
FRANK TORRE - Frank Torre played for the Phillies in 1962 and 1963 and is the oldest brother of Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre. If you are a baseball fan you have to love Joe Torre, even if you hate the Dodgers and the entire city of Los Angeles. If the Phillies all start hitting at the same time they can run any team out of the yard.
This series is all about great athletes meeting the opportunity for greatness. It’s a mental game which is why Manny Ramirez is the greatest home run hitter in post-season history because of that entire planet Man Ram thing. Manny is fat and out of shape and appears to have way too much fun being rich. But he can hit and, after all, pressure or not, it’s just a glorified wiffle ball game. Can you still buy wiffle balls? I was a serious pitcher and hitter with a plastic bat.
ST. MARK’S - Saint Mark was an evangelist before there was television and, amazingly, 2,000 years ago holy rolled around with Saint Peter as in rolling with my homey. Modern-day evangelicals are perceived as scary by most Catholics because of their lack of cynicism and sparkling with that chosen one contented look on their faces.
Anyway, everyone knows the god of football is Catholic and this Friday night the St. Mark’s Spartans will “go to church” at Legends field bringing a 4-1 record to town including victories over Sussex Central and Dover from the Henlopen Conference.
Speaking of the Catholic hotline, the last five head coaches of Cape Henlopen were Catholic and somewhere in there is a penance joke.
BIG FISH - Norman “Big Fish” Sugrue is a Redskins fan and last Sunday wore a Skins jersey to the Missing Link and afterwards a disgruntled Eagles fan on the near side of a recent loss said to Norman, “How long have you been gay?”
Norman went to the game with Reggie Branch, a former running back for the Redskins and a fit and pumped 260-pound Under Armour dude and ain’t nobody calling him names. But Redskins fans are all the way out of the closet and off the Wal-Mart rack.
Here’s an email I got from former football and lacrosse Cape guy Alex Hense: “I have not seen this kind of dynamic Skins offense since 1991 when I was 8 years old. I loved the fun bunch! years old. I loved the fun bunch! But I love these Free Loaders more because they pound the ball, eat the clock, air it out, use unique plays (A.R.E. pass to Cooley) and take it to every team, no matter the hostile crowd (Cowboys and definitely Philly).”
SNIPPETS - Don’t forget to buy a raffle ticket this Friday night on the way into Legends Stadium for the Dec. 21 Eagles at Redskins game. You win two tickets and a parking pass to the game and you can wear your Eagles jersey just in case there is an opportunity to talk major noise. Proceeds from the raffle benefit the Mariner football program.
Dave Luscan, after winning the Make-A-Wish Triathlon last Sept. 20, has been selected as the triathlete to represent the state of Delaware at the Best of the U.S. Amateur Triathlon competition in Tempe, Ariz. “Dave is a great guy who works hard,” says his wife Leigh Ann, which is all the endorsement I need. You can stop by the Running Store in Rehoboth to make a donation to the Tri-Delaware Club which will help Dave with expenses for the Oct. 26 event.
How do deer know when it’s deer season? I don’t know but they do, so I guess all that camouflage clothing doesn’t work. This is the time deer start crossing roads so be doubly careful and stay buckled and better a deer than a tree. Proceed with prudence!
The Flyers open the season at home Saturday and Sarah Palin will drop the first puck. Flyers owner Ed Snyder has donated major money to the McCain campaign. Are most hockey fans really Republicans? No, but I guess the owners are. I don’t know what any of this means, but as a fan of the Flyers from the beginning I don’t like it. Ice the puck.
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Sports Editor Emeritus
Email Fredman at fredman@capegazette.com
