When did I become banner boy?

Amada Mandujano is Sussex County’s más grande de México - largest Mexican - and as long as he keeps smiling I will keep calling him that. Amado is a former Cape lineman who just graduated from Wesley College in the honors psychology program and is looking for a master’s program.

His older sisters, Rosa, Lillie and Monica, are all Cape graduates and anyone who knows this family absolutely loves them. Amado caught a touchdown pass from Joey Cahill in Lantz Surfboards’ first game - a 48-0 win over the Rebels which - trajo la casa abajo -brought the house down.

BAD CALL - An afternoon football game at Legends Stadium where the wind is always blowing may be decided on the coin toss. Football rule numbers 1 through 10 at the beach is never take the ball if you win the toss. Outkast won the toss and took the ball. Lantz Surfboards took the wind and in the second half, when it was their option, took the wind again and, in fact, had the wind all day long. Lantz reached the title game by defeating the Rebels in game one 48-0 while Outkast outlasted Plummer’s 32-14 highlighted by home run balls thrown by Rob Moore and a 103-yard interception return by Kevin Maull.

The championship game was a wild affair as Joey Cahill threw deep touchdowns to Richard Lantz, Alan White and Marcus Morris to lead 24-6 at halftime, but Outcast came back in the second half making it a fast and crazy game of highlights featuring speed players. JROC scored a touchdown and two-point conversion making it 42-22 with two minutes remaining. The game was called after Tykee Perry of Lantz was blatantly cheap shot tackled by a player who calls himself “Dirty” and some attitudes started getting dicey and the trash talking escalated to coffee break time at the landfill.
The trophy presentation and post game photo opportunity did not take place because some sneaky person stole the football off the trophy in plain view of everyone and if it wasn’t a prank then just exactly what was it?

LITTLE HURDLER – Kailyn Maull is just two years old and the daughter of Kai Maull who still holds state records in the long and triple jumps. During the championship flag game last Sunday Kailyn was running hurdles on the track by going underneath and jumping the cross piece that holds the hurdle together. She already looks like a track athlete and she’s cute too.

I’M ALL ABOUT IT - Last Saturday at Caesar Rodney it was every boys and girls track team in the state competing hard all day long and there is never a hint of anything bordering unsportsmanlike behavior and there is no police presence because that would be rude.

And track and field is the most multicultural of sports and results come quickly as no one waits long to find out if they won or lost. Somewhere the athletes and coaches are teaching us all a lesson - too bad you can’t find the policy and rulemakers at track meets and maybe that’s why they work so well. Yes, that was a cheap shot. For 35 years I tried to be a teacher without class but I had to retire to achieve it.

A BANNER DAY - I hung the Cape Gazette banner from the scorers table at Legends Stadium last Sunday morning prior to the flag football championship games mumbling to myself, “You are such a loser! When did you become banner boy?”

A triangulation of cooperation between Cape Henlopen, The YMCA and the Cape Gazette had brought the “fastest show on turf” to Legends Stadium and it was great. All the athletes upped their game and loved the chance to play on the new field which shined so green it hurt your eyeballs. Once again I was all about athletic diversity and people competing hard with more highlights then I see all season in the NFL.

James Botti from the Y does a great job as commissioner of this league and when some fans - amazingly women - and a sprinkling of players went stupid in the final minutes of a five hour day, James took it personally. But I never take stupidity in others personally because that is all on them. It was a great Sunday and I checked it off as “going To church.”

SNIPPETS - Looking over Dan Cooks’ photos of the Saturday night fights at Cape - I’ll pass on the joke - I am reminded why I resisted pressure from Willie Reddish - whom I knew and was Sonny Liston’s trainer - to go into a Philly gym when I was a strapping quick twitching no body fat teenager. It’s the getting hit in the face part like standing behind Big Brown in the starting gate. Will Big Brown win the Belmont in two weeks and Triple Crown? If the horse knows it’s a race which is a concept then there is no way he loses. But if you know how a horse thinks then what does that make you? Go on now, git!