sun 0204/sports b1

Transcription

sun 0204/sports b1

SUSSEX COUNTY’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
Sports
Sunday, February 4, 2006
NEW JERSEY SUNDAY HERALD
B—1
Bears playing the ‘no respect’ card
Chicago linebacker Brian
Urlacher will lead
the NFL’s topranked defense
against one of the
league’s best
offenses today in
Super Bowl XLI.
By DAVE GOLDBERG
AP Football Writer
SUPER BOWL XLI: CHICAGO BEARS
MIAMI — Forget the perception that the
Chicago Bears are mere patsies for Peyton
Manning.
They have a decent chance at winning
Sunday’s Super Bowl against the Colts.
Really.
Maybe these guys aren’t quite the
Monsters of the Midway — under today’s
rules, Brian Urlacher might get flagged just
for breathing on Manning. But their defense
can still be pretty scary.
“The Bears have a way of turning first and
10 into second and 15 into third and 20,” Tony
Dungy said this week.
Yes, the Colts are seven-point favorites
despite the Bears’ 13-3 regular-season
record, second best in the NFL to San
Diego’s 14-2. There’s a simple reason: It’s not
the Bears who are the underdogs, it’s the
NFC, which was as bad this season as the
AFC was good. Its final four of Indy, New
England, San Diego and Baltimore likely
would be favored over any of the NFC semifinalists.
Still, Chicago can win this game if three
things happen:
Indianapolis reverts to at least a semblance of its shabby regular-season run
defense, an NFL-worst 173 yards a game.
That figure has been reduced by a full 100
yards in the playoffs to 73.3.
Chicago quarterback Rex Grossman
plays as he did in better efforts. “I had 12
games where I played well, six where I
played not so well,” he said. “Not so well” is
an understatement — in one of those games
he had a zero passer rating, in another a 1.3.
The Bears continue to get turnovers.
They had 34 takeaways during the regular
season and five more in the playoffs,
although they were only plus-6 for the year
because of Grossman’s propensity for interceptions and fumbles.
See SUPER BOWL, Page B7
AP Photo
HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING: JACKSON 43, HIGH POINT 21
HS BASKETBALL
13 teams
qualify
for states
By STEFAN BONDY
Herald Assistant Sports Editor
Seven of the 10 Sussex County
Interscholastic League boys basketball teams qualified for the
state playoffs, maintaining a .500
record or better by Saturday’s
cutoff.
Though the high number is
partly the result of parity
throughout the league (five teams
have SCIL records within two
games of .500), it is also a testament to the SCIL’s success in
independent games.
The league is a combined 22-11
against outside opposition, helping the bubble teams like High
Point, Newton and Jefferson earn
a bid.
“I’ve been around the league a
long time and the quality is
there,” Vernon coach Matt
Ferguson said. “With our teams
it’s not just about stopping one or
two guys, you have to stop teams.
“It’s a credit to our entire
league.”
But it’s hard putting too much
stock into the SCIL’s out of conference record, built largely against
Warren and Morris County opposition. The SCIL hasn’t won a sectional title since Chris Jent and
the Spartans in 1988, and none of
this year’s teams have that sort of
talent.
Last year, all six qualifying
teams were bounced by the second round. Newton made the
North I, Group II finals two years
ago, but beat two SCIL teams to
get there.
“I thought we might have had a
chance (in the final against
Dwight Morrow),” Newton coach
John Davey said. “Then I saw
they had a 7-foot, Division-I center and we just couldn’t matchup.
“Every coach has high expectations going into the tournament
but when you start scouting and
see that there are some good
clubs in Bergen County, you have
to get realistic.”
So for now, Davey and his team
can take solace in their qualifying
for the tournament. They overcame a poor start, starting 2-6 in
the league, and beat Kittatinny on
Friday for a 9-8 record.
“It’s an enormous achievement
in terms of where we started
from,” Davey said. “We only had
one starter, Dan DiMarzo, returning from last year with any experience. We were losing in the
beginning and the kids looked
glum.
“But I think they grew together
and are gaining confidence with
every game.”
Jefferson also earned its bid on
Friday, beating High Point to get
to 9-9. Sparta, Vernon, Pope John,
Hopatcong and High Point are the
other SCIL teams that qualified.
On the girls side, six teams
qualified (Sparta, High Point,
Wallkill Valley, Pope John, Vernon
and Jefferson), though all were
assured a spot before Friday.
Photo by Anna Murphey/NJH
High Point’s Greg Martin pinned Jackson’s Tyler Wilton in a whirlwind bout at 140 pounds Friday night. Martin pinned Wilton in 1:03.
High Point’s Greg Martin is congratulated by teammates after winning the 140-pound bout at High Point on Friday night with a fall at 1:03.
Learning Experience
By ANDREW GOODMAN
Herald Sports Writer
WANTAGE — The rural atmosphere didn’t intimidate Jackson. High Point’s lineup Friday wasn’t intimidating, either.
Without five regulars, the Wildcats lost to Jackson,
43-21. Tyler Forbeck (112), Ryan Swarts (125), Greg
Case (130), Gavin Tarsa (135) and Kyle Donadio (145)
didn’t wrestle for various reasons. Some were sick and
some were injured but High Point coach John
Gardner wouldn’t specify who was suffering from
what.
Since it was a regular season match, Gardner said
Wildcats learn from 43-21
loss to state’s top team
he didn’t think it would be prudent to have them wrestle.
“If this was the state finals, we could have gone,” he
said. “But in November our goal wasn’t to win
(Friday). Our goal is to have everybody at full strength
come Tuesday (for the state tournament) — and then
hopefully Thursday and then hopefully Sunday.”
High Point would have had enough trouble beating
Jackson — the state’s best team — with a full lineup,
so the Wildcats didn’t have much of a chance without
five wrestlers. They lost the first six bouts and trailed
40-6 through 10. As a result, the match wasn’t as beneficial to each team as it could have been.
The injuries and illnesses took away some of the
intensity from the match, but Gardner wouldn’t use
them as an excuse.
“You really can’t complain about not having a full
lineup,” he said. “We’ve been really fortunate all season to stay injury-free.”
Still, the score could have been a lot closer. There
were three tossup bouts, all of which Jackson won.
See WILDCATS, Page B5
Schlichter trying to rebuild his wasted life
By TIM DAHLBERG
AP Sports Columnist
COMMENTARY: SUPER BOWL XLI
MIAMI — Art Schlichter’s career stats are
memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Ten years behind bars. Twenty some convictions. Forty-four different prisons.
One life wasted.
“I served my time,” Schlichter said. “I got
an enormous amount of time for what I did.”
He was once the quarterback of the future
for the Indianapolis Colts, the Peyton Manning
of his time. He was always the ultimate con
man, a smooth talker who could separate people from their money faster than he could zip a
football downfield.
Gambling was his addiction. Greed proved
to be his downfall.
There was always one more score to make,
one last bet to win back. He stole from friends
and family alike, and there wasn’t a credit card
he didn’t try to lift.
Twice he even conned his lawyer into smuggling a phone into prison so he could place
bets from his cell.
His wife left with their two young daughters,
but the urge to gamble was stronger than the
urge to be a husband and father. He had issues
with his father, but was in prison when he
committed suicide.
“I don’t know how to tell you how much pain
we’ve had,” his mother said a few years ago.
He’s a free man now, living with his mother
in Indiana and reporting to his probation officer on a regular basis.
Indianapolis
quarterback Art
Schlicther (10)
is rundown and
sacked by
Pittsburgh’s
Gary Dunn in
this Sept. 8,
1985 file photo
in Pittsburgh.
He wants you to believe he has changed.
Five months of therapy have helped, and he
says he understands now the roots of the
demons that drove him to swindle loved ones
and strangers with an equal lack of remorse.
The Super Bowl is Sunday and he doesn’t
have a bet down. Not only that, he’s organized
a group to help compulsive gamblers like himself.
You want to believe him, but then you wonder. Is it all another act?
This is a guy, after all, who was once sent
back to prison for betting on the Super Bowl
and going to the racetrack at the same time he
was getting treatment at the Compulsive
Gambling Center in Baltimore.
See DAHLBERG, Page B7
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
B—2
SPORTS
SCIL sends three to states
By Herald Staff
HACKENSACK — All Laura Ackerson
needed was a little help from her friends.
The Jefferson senior again put the firstyear Jefferson program on the map by finishing second at the girls North I Sectional
tournament Saturday.
Ackerson is one of three Sussex County
Interscholastic League bowlers to qualify for
the state tournament Feb. 19.
“I didn’t know what to expect, and I don’t
think Laurie did either,” Jefferson coach
Marianne DiRupo said. “She bowled great,
she just threw the ball really well.”
Ackerson finished with a 645 series, and a
high game of 223. All three of her games
were over 200.
“I knew I was capable of those scores,” she
said, “but I know I can go even higher.”
Joining Ackerson on Feb. 19 will be Wallkill
Valley’s Kaitlynn Egan and Samantha
Carter. Egan rolled a 610 series to finish
HIGH SCHOOL BOWLING:
GIRLS SECTIONALS
sixth, and Carter rolled a 577 series to finish
15th. The duo became the first girls in
Wallkill Valley’s history to advance to the
state tournament.
“I had a feeling I’d make it to states,” said
Egan, a junior. “I’ve been practicing really
hard and I wanted it really bad.”
Egan’s older brother, Ryan, also qualified
for the state tournament his junior year.
All of the SCIL’s female bowlers were able
to roll together as individuals at the predominantly team tournament. The familiarity
allowed everyone to feel more comfortable in
their new surroundings, but Ackerson may
have had an edge.
Joining her in Hackensack was nearly the
whole Falcons team.
“It was amazing,” Ackerson said. “You’re
bowling as an individual next to all these
girls on teams, and having my teammates
there made me feel a little better.
“It inspired me.”
Seeing three of the SCIL’s top bowlers hold
their own as individuals left many of the
coaches wondering how a SCIL All-Star
team could compete against the state’s best.
“The SCIL is very competitive,” DiRupo
said. “If we could have fielded a team with
just girls from the SCIL, I think we could
have won the whole thing.”
All of the girls competing will get a
warmup for their state tournament when
they compete in the boys sectional tournament on Feb. 10.
North I Sectional Tournament
At Bowlers World in Hackensack
Jefferson
Laura Ackerson 217-223-205—645.
Wallkill Valley
Kaitlyn Egan 202-225-183—610.
Samantha Carter 184-167-226—577.
Jess Condon 172-140-183—495.
Raptors looking for a goalie
By Herald Staff
The Kittatinny travel team is
looking for players to fill spots on
its U9 boys team and an experienced goalie for its U12 boys flight
one team.
For more information, call
Nancy Fernandez at (973) 9482210.
The Newton soccer club will
hold its spring registration on Feb.
15 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., and Feb.
17 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the
Merriam Ave. School. Cost is $35
for one child, $60 for two and $80
for three or more.
For more information, call John
Kelley at (862) 268-1057.
The Lenape Valley Soccer Club
will hold spring registration on
Feb. 10 from 9 a.m. to noon at the
Byram Intermediate School Gym
Foyer. The program includes an
in-town instructional league for
pre-kindergarteners ($55), an intown instructional league for
kindergarteners ($55), an in-town
program for kids in first- through
fourth-grade with weeknight practices and Saturday games ($75)
and Sussex County programs for
middle schoolers with weeknight
practices and Saturday games
($75). A birth certificate is
required for all new players.
The club is also looking for volunteers to fill various positions
including head and assistant
coaches. For more information,
call (973) 691-7070 or visit
www.lenapesoccer.org.
download the registration form
from
the
website
http://eteamz.active.com/swlbaseball. The application must be
received not later than Feb. 15.
Jefferson’s Babe Ruth League
is accepting registration for 13-15
year-old, non-traveling team.
Registration deadline is March 20,
and the cost is $125. No refunds
will be issued after March 30. First
time applicants must provide a
copy of a birth certificate with
their application. In-person registration will be held Feb. 24 and
March 3 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at
White Rock Elementary School.
The league will host a number
of fundraisers at the Oak Ridge
McDonalds. Fundraiser dates are
Feb. 13, Feb. 27, March 6 and
March 20 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Registration forms will be made
available.
For more information, contact
Gerard DelPolito at (973) 208-9863
or John Resier at (973) 663-2483 or
Nunzio Cassara at (973) 208-8120
or the recreation office at (973)
663-8404.
The Lafayette Invitational
Basketball Tournament will be
held in March for boys and girls
teams in fifth- through eighthgrade. This year will also feature a
free throw shooting contest and
hot shot contest.
Anyone interested in playing for
the Vernon PAL Spring Babe Ruth
Baseball League must register
and attend at least one of two tryouts. Registration forms are available at the PAL buidling or
www.vernonPAL.com. All registration forms and $130 payment
must be dropped off in the PAL
box outside the PAL building prior
to tryouts. Any registrations
received after Feb. 8 will charged
a $15 fee.
Tryouts will be held Feb. 11 and
Feb. 17 at Legends Resort. The
Sunday tryout will be held from 9
a.m. to 11 a.m., and the Saturday
tryout will be from noon to 2 p.m.
For more information, call the
Vernon PAL at (973) 764-9514.
The North Jersey Lakestars
will be forming boys AAU teams.
The team is looking for freshmen
or sophomore boys in Sussex and
Morris Counties. For more information,
visit
www.njlakestars.com.
Lafayette Amateur Athletics
will hold spring registrations Feb.
2 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in front of
the gym. For more information,
email
Joe
Onorevole
at
[email protected].
Basketball
The Stillwater-Fredon recreation league is holding registration for all third- through eighthgrade boys and girls. Registration
forms are available in the main
office at Kittatinny High School
and Stillwater and Fredon elementary schools.
New this year is a ninththrough 12th-grade intramural
league.
Louise Imperiale at (973) 300-2448.
Baseball
The final registration date for
the Sussex-Wantage Little League
is Feb. 15. All late applicants must
Fresella at (973) 209-4833 or Greg
Hoffman at (973) 209-2968.
COMMUNITY BRIEFS
The High Point U13 traveling
team has openings for its spring
team. Players must be 13 or under
by April 30, 2007. Games begin
April 1 and run through June.
Home games are in Branchville or
Wantage, and away games are in
Morris, Passaic and Bergen
Counties.
For more information, call Scott
Conklin at (973) 702-0384.
The High Point Soccer Club is
starting a U9 girls travel team for
the spring of 2007. Players must
turn 10 after Aug. 1.
For more information, call Joe
Hayes at (973) 702-1220.
Boxing
The Vernon PAL will host its
boxing program at the Team
Boxing facility in Vernon. Sessions
are held Tuesdays and Thursdays
from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. There is a
yearly registration fee of $50, and
a monthly fee of $15. All sessions
are taught by a New Jersey
Association of USA Boxing certified boxing coach.
For more information, call (973)
764-9514.
Softball
Newton Travel Softball will have
signups and open practice at
Newton High School on Feb. 6,
Feb. 15, Feb. 22 and Feb. 27 from 7
p.m. to 9 p.m. All registration
forms and payment will be due by
the final practice.
The North Jersey Angels fastpitch team is looking for 10 and
under players for the upcoming
tournament season. For tryout or
general information, call Gary
Tullo at (973) 980-3503 or email
him at [email protected]
Football
The Lenape Valley Football and
Cheerleading organization will
hold meetings on the second
Sunday of each month at 7 p.m. at
the Netcong Sports Club.
SCCC will hold a preseason
camp every Sunday in February.
The camp will be run by
Skylanders softball coach Nick
DeGennaro and costs $60. Ages 8
to 14 will be run from noon to 2
p.m., and ages 15 and up will run
from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
DeGennaro at (973) 300-2230.
Golf
The fourth annual Sonnie
Lehman Agency — Survivors’
Resources Tournament will be
held May 7 at the Great Bear Golf
and Country Club. The cost is $125
for the best ball, blind flight tournament. Cost includes continental
breakfast, golf and cart, skill contest, prizes and awards luncheon
buffet.
Peggy Emmanuel at (570) 2962827 or Sonnie Lehman at (570)
296-6416.
The North Jersey Tuesday
Morning Senior League is looking
for players to build another team
in the Sussex County area. The
league plays in West Orange, East
Hanover and Randolph. The
league is open to those 60 to 80
years old, and plays from midApril to September.
For more information, call Gene
Staracco at (973) 361-3271, Don
Slocum at (973) 748-6398 or Bob
Thourot at (908) 362-8062.
Lacrosse
Tennis
The Sussex County Community
College team will be holding a winter indoor camp for players ages 7
to 18. Session III will be Feb. 10.
Session IV will be March 2 and 9.
The camp will be run by
Skylanders
coach
Todd
Poltersdorf. For more information, call (973) 300-2253.
The New Jersey Interscholastic
Officials Association will be holding cadet classes for individuals
interested in becoming high
school officials. Classes will be
held at various locations throughout the state starting in January.
Prior playing experience is not
necessary. Individuals must be 18
or older.
For more information call
Charles Talley at (908) 753-1926 or
visit ww.njiloa.org.
The
Jefferson
Township
Recreation Department, in conjunction with Sy’s Guys and Gals,
will be sponsoring a U.S. Tennis
Association sanctioned instructional program this spring and
summer. There will be five lessons
of two levels of instruction. All
classes will be held at the tennis
courts at Chamberlain Park.
Junior level instruction will be
held from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. starting June 6. The sessions are open
to children between the ages of 7
and 14, and the cost is $70 per person.
Adult level instruction will be
held from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. starting June 23. The cost is $70 per
person.
For more information, call (973)
663-8404.
Frankford-Branchville Little
League is looking for umpires for
the 2007 season. Training will be
provided and umpires will be paid
for
the
games
officiated.
Candidates should be 13 years of
age or older. Applications will be
available at registration. For more
information please contact Tim
Depuy at (973) 579-5472.
Skiing/Snowboarding
The Jefferson Recreation
department will offer a six-week
ski/snowboard
program
at
Mountain Creek for kids in sixththrough 12th-grade.
Carol Punturieri at (973) 8404 ext.
11.
The Wallkill Valley travel club is
looking for players from Sussex
County for the upcoming fall season. Girls in seventh- or eighthgrade should contact John
Volleyball
The Sussex County Community
College will be hosting a team-oriented volleyball league this winter
on Monday nights from 7 p.m. to 10
p.m. The season kicked Jan. 8.
For more information, call Al
Becker at (973) 300-2212.
Sportman’s Expo
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February 10 & 11
2007
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PAL Athletic Center
Parsippany, NJ
COMMUNITY BOWLING RESULTS
Early Gals
Jan. 30
Roy Bischoff Inc.
93
61
Gatwyns II
90
64
NJ Excavating
87
67
K&L Plumbing
86
68
Tom K Accounting
76
78
A Shore Thing
66
88
She Devils
64
90
Time to Spare
54
100
High games: Ann Schelle 204, Sharon
Blohm 199, Ceil Lantinga 186.
High series: Lantinga 520, Jennifer
Morciglio 527, Schelle 504.
Selective Insurance Mixed
Jan. 30
Awesome Foursome
108
46
The Selected Few
102
52
Deadwood
94
60
Eleanor’s Boys
91
63
Alley Gators
88
66
No Such Luck
88
66
YWAAL
88
66
Bowling Thunder
84
70
Silver Bullets
82
72
Motley Accrue
75
79
Fantastic Four
73
81
Byram Bombers
71
83
The Tropical Depressions
67
87
Gutter Rats
65
89
Little Rascals
63
91
Lucky Strikes
51
103
Alley Oops
51
103
The Fowl Ups
45
109
Mens’ high series: Brad Rigotty 688,
Gary McCrea 661, Bill Wormann 659.
Mens’ high games: Brian Krick 257,
Dan McCole 256, McCrea 256.
Womens’ high series: Lyndsey McCole
529, Jill Paddock 505, Kerry Carr 484.
Womens’ high games: McCole 255,
Paddock 194, Harriet Summerell 194.
Super Sexy Seniors
Jan. 30
2 Does and a Buck
87
46
JC’s Guy and Dolls
86
47
I Don’t Care
81
52
Jersey Jems
76
57
2 Jacks and a Jill
73
60
The Nomads
71
62
Leo’s Lions
70
63
Triple D’s
67
66
The Rocking Pins
67
66
KLM
64
69
Supremes
62
71
Two Peas and a Pod
61
72
Striking Seniors
59
74
Lucky Ones
59
74
The Lucky Strikers
57
76
Wildthings
54
79
Lucky Three
53
80
We Three
50
83
Mens’ high games: Larry Dombal Sr.
258, Ed Melchior 203, Tony Zotta 174.
Mens’ high series: Dombal Sr. 696,
Melchior 501, Ray Moore 450.
Womens’ high games: Dottie O’Neill
223, Blanche Pizzulo 206, Norma
Napolitano 178.
Womens’ high series: Molly Harrje
525, Pizzulo 515, Napolitano 402.
Newcomers
Jan. 30
Georges Salvage
99
55
Northern Mechanic
98
56
N.J. Excavating
94
60
First Hope Bank
93
61
Tech Check
89.5
64.5
ELMS
69
85
DePue’s Cleaning
67
87
Andover Garden
65
89
Conklin Home Impr.
53
101
Nobody’s Home
42.5 111.5
High games: Sue Issler 205, Debbie
Guancione 195, Sheila Phillips 193.
High series: Issler 599, Jan Many 545,
Phillips 530.
Monday Morning
Jan. 29
Fun Time
80
46
Full of Surprises
76
50
Good Time Girls
74
52
Bad Girls
73.5
52.5
Strikes ‘r’ Us
70.5
55.5
No Split Ends
61
65
Alley Cats
61
65
Penn Pals
60
66
Ball Busters
57
69
Chickies
53
73
Pin Heads
52
74
Nobody’s Home
38
88
High games: Chris Diaz 232, Patti
Noon 214, Joanne Yaueger 204.
High series: Diaz 566, Noon 560,
Yaueger 556.
Monday Night Bowing
Jan. 29
The Pizza Place
85
Jimenez Landscaping
78
Jokers Wild
76
Hampton Auto
75
41
48
50
51
Toll Brothers
67
59
Party Time Tents
67
59
Village Saloon
66
60
Farmland Dairies
65
61
First Hope Bank
62
64
Bras Balls
61
65
Chokers
56
70
Hampton Deli
55
71
Boat Doc
53
73
Dick and Sons
52
74
Colby Boys
51
75
County Welding Supply
37
89
High Games: Brian Hellmich 266,
Keith Bichner 261, Lawrence Dombal
259.
High Series: Mike Vanicek 716, Jake
Eby 707, Bill Fletcher 706.
Sunday Night Mixed
Jan. 28
Mike and 3 nit wits
99
41
RDFMB
93
47
We Be Here
88
52
Eric Who
85
55
Team #10
81
59
Fa Fuu
78
62
Wbs
77
63
3 Ladies & A Troll
77
63
Killer B’s
76
64
In Laws (One Short)
75
65
Fubar
75
65
Team #19
72
68
Harry and His Harem
69
69
Team #18
67
73
North Church Gravel
65
75
Team #6
62
78
F Troop
56.5
78.5
Thunder & lightning
58
82
Left Overs
56
84
Team17
51.5
88.5
Gutternots
50
87
Casper
0
140
Womens’ High Games: Michele Bordt
269, Stephanie Babcock 226, Dee Rielly
215.
Mens’ High Games: Harry Cambell
248, Steve Oakes 226, John DeGroat JR
224, Jesse De Groat 224.
Lafayette Mixed
Jan. 26
Fonzarelli’s
105
42
Eastern Propane
104
43
Generaholics
88
59
Medicare Plus I
87
60
Packard Industries
87
60
The Leftovers
85
62
Mixed Nuts
83
64
Team 9
77
70
TMB Const.
77
70
GNS
72
75
All or Nothing
69
78
Rebels
63
84
Bowling Stones
56
91
Pop’s Team
54
93
Team 7
36
111
Nobody’s Home
38
114
Mens’ high games: J.R. Mabee 277,
Dean Crowell 277, Frank Steele 269.
Mens’ high series: Crowell 749, Chris
Johnson 740, Mabee 723.
Womens’ high games: Debbie Kasko
234, Christine Borino 223, Michelle Wilkie
210.
Womens’ high series: Victoria
Goncalves 597, Borino 573, Kasko 569.
Friday Nite Sportsmen
Jan. 26
Havens Trucking
85
62
#8
84
63
Courtright Painting
83
64
Alyholics
75
72
4 Kings & a Queen
73
74
XXX Men
68
79
Tire King
67
80
Koz’s
53
94
High Games: Dave Rome 279, Jay
Black 258, Bob Snyder 258.
High Series: Dave Rome 731, Jay
Black 729, Jason Hall 718.
Sparta Men’s League
Jan. 24
Lentini Redmix
380
292
Mark It Down
364.5 307.5
Team 17
360.5 307.5
Bob & Bills Towing
353.5 318.5
Team 1
352
320
Team 18
344
328
Simon Peter Sport
343
329
Bennett Sand & Gravel
341 330.5
Kaching
340
332
Accurate Forming
338.5 333.5
Family Ford
336.5 335.5
Team 12
318
354
Team 13
316
356
Team 9
312
360
Freedom Business Mac 306.5 365.5
Team 15
302.5 369.5
LK Mohawk Florist
278
390
High Games: Bruce Eby 279, John
Ryback 268, Kris Gordon 268.
High Series: Bruce Eby 714, Kris
Gordon 677, Bob Stormes 675.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: UCONN 61, RUTGERS 50 (OT)
Rutgers can’t cash in
on 9-point lead late
By PAT EATON-ROBB
Associated Press Writer
HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut blew a 9-point second-half lead
Saturday, gave up a game-tying 3-point shot at the buzzer and didn’t hit
a field goal in overtime.
But the Huskies (14-8, 3-6) used a stifling defense and clutch foul
shooting to overcome all of that and beat Rutgers 61-50, putting an end
to a five-game losing streak, the team’s longest in six seasons.
“It finally feels good to get that monkey off our back,” said Jeff
Adrien, who led UConn with 19 points, including 14 after intermission.
“It feels great.”
Neither team shot well. The Huskies held Rutgers (9-14, 2-8) to 29
percent from the field, but hit just 34 percent themselves.
They didn’t make a shot from the field after Craig Austrie’s jumper
put them up 42-34 with 4:37 left in the game. That’s when the Scarlet
Knights began chipping away, pulling to within two when Anthony
Farmer hit a 3-pointer with 11 seconds left in regulation.
UConn extended the lead back to three, but Farmer grabbed the
rebound of a missed free throw by Stanley Robinson, drove down the
right side of the court and hit a running shot from just behind the arc
as time expired.
“Anthony made big plays, and I have confidence to put the ball in his
hands at the end of games, no matter how he has shot,” Rutgers coach
Fred Hill said. “I always tell the guys, it’s not about just making big
shots, it’s about making big plays.”
Another 3-pointer by Farmer with just over three minutes left in
overtime gave the Scarlet Knights the lead at 50-49. But UConn ended
the game on an 12-0 run, all on foul shots.
“It was a gritty win,” Austrie said. “It came down to free throws at
the end. That’s usually what games come down to, and we just hit our
free throws and put the game away.”
UConn was 24 of 36 from the line, as Rutgers committed 29 fouls.
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B—3
SPORTS
HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL
Falcons get into
states with win
By Herald Staff
JEFFERSON — Jefferson
needed one more victory to qualify for states, and the Falcons
delivered.
Up one entering the final quarter, Jefferson pulled away in the
fourth by outscoring High Point
19-14 en route to a 49-43 Sussex
County Interscholastic League
boys basketball victory.
Only one Jefferson player
scored more than 10 points —
Derek Hall with 11. Teammates
Jack
Champion
and
Pat
McCarney added 10 and nine.
Chris Puzio led High Point with
a game-high 13 points.
Jefferson 49, High Point 43
High Point (9-9) 9 11
9 14— 43
Jefferson (9-9) 9 12
9 19— 49
High Point: Bentson 7, Frey 7, Puzio
13, Carl 8, Gray 4, Decker 2, Trudin 2,
Gaskin.
Jefferson: P. McCarney 9, Valentini 5,
Champion 10, Sisco 2, Hiland, Hall 11,
Kalish 2, G. McCarney 4, Kern 4,
Emenuga 2.
Hopatcong 59, Sparta 58
Photos by Randy Mills/allproshots.com
Vernon’s Amy Buffalino (11) and Lindsay Kulik (44) double team Pope John’s Vanessa Moore (33) Friday night in Vernon. Moore finished with a game-high 20 points, but the Vikings got the 42-28 win.
Vernon drops Pope John, 42-28
By Herald Staff
VERNON — And it just keeps
getting better for Vernon.
The Vikings overcame an 0-for11 first quarter to beat Pope John
42-28 Friday night in Sussex
County Interscholastic League
girls basketball.
Vernon trailed by six after the
first quarter, but outscored Pope
John 18-7 in the second to a take
five-point lead into halftime. In
the third quarter, it was all
Karianne Griffin.
Literally.
The Viking junior scored nine
of her 11 points in the third to go
with a team-high eight rebounds.
Alicia Yaccarino led the Vikings
with 15 points.
Pope John’s Vanessa Moore
scored a game-high 20, but the
Vikings defense held her teammates to just eight points.
“The kids played great defense
all night,” Vernon coach Bill Foley
said. “We were trying to push the
ball up and down the floor, and I
think we got them tired.”
Vernon 42, Pope John 28
Pope John (11-6)6 7
11
4 — 28
Vernon (13-6) 0 18
9 15 — 42
Pope John: Allen, Magdaleno 7,
Moore 20, Begley, Loechner, Hoch 1,
Mabunay, Williams, Cato.
Vernon: Buffalino 8, Kulik 2, Lortz,
Yaccarino 15, Sperber, Griffin 11, Megna
2, Schmidt 4.
Wallkill Valley 49,
Lenape Valley 37
HARDYSTON
—
Wallkill
Survived a five-point third quarter to defeat Lenape Valley
Friday night. Jackie Cuomo
paced Wallkill Valley with a game
hight 17. Teammate Heather
Russell had 15.
Sam Baranowski had 13 points
for Lenape Valley.
Wallkill Valley 49, Lenape Valley 37
Lenape V. (1-15)8
4
12 13 — 37
Wallkill V. (13-4)10 15
5 19 — 49
Lenape Valley: Greziak 7, Tempe,
Newson 7, Jonhson 5, Pavlichko 3, Costa
2, Baranowski 13.
Wallkill Valley: Russell 15, Paiva 3,
Cuomo 17, Romano 2, Mayer 6, Napovier
6.
Sparta 48, Hopatcong 18
HOPATCONG
—
Margaret
Girls Basketball Standings
SCIL Overall
Team
W
L
W L
Sparta
13
1
14 2
High Point
11
3
12 5
Wallkill Valley
10
4
13 4
Vernon
9
5
13 6
Pope John
9
5
10 6
Jefferson
8
6
9 9
Newton
6
8
6 11
Kittatinny
3
11
3 14
Lenape Valley
1
13
1 15
Hopatcong
0
14
1 16
Friday’s scores
Wallkill Valley 49, Lenape Valley 37
Newton 59, Kittatinny 53
High Point 60, Jefferson 33
Monday’s games
Newton at Belvidere, 7 p.m.
Hanover Park at Lenape Valley, 7 p.m.
2, Flaherty 2, Lehman 1, An 7.
High Point: Wingle 14, Cain 11,
Armstrong 18, Robertazzi 9. Pennaker 2,
Chrysanthopoukis 4, Donagio 2.
Hackettstown 58,
Morris County Tech 28
DENVILLE — Hackettstown
led by 18 after the first quarter of
its win over Morris County Tech
Saturday.
The Tigers failed to qualify for
the state tournament.
Pope John’s Vanessa Moore (33) goes up for two of her game-high
20 points against Vernon’s Lindsay Kulik Friday night in Vernon.
Carbery had 10 points as Sparta
cranked out a victory over
Hopatcong.
Megan Tobin scored half of
Hopatcong’s 18 points.
Sparta (13-1) 16 15
11
6 — 48
Hopat. (1-16) 6
3
3
6 — 18
Sparta: Lusardi 6, J. Cresbaugh 6,
Pittius 4, Bonventre 8, Carbery 10, K.
Cresbaugh 4, Viggiano 4, Smith 3, Baker
1, Mathis 2.
Hopatcong: Tobin 9, Blohm 2, Karinja
4, Baker 1, Krowl 2
Newton 59, Kitatinny 53
HAMPTON — Alex Takacs led
Newton with 21 points. Fellow
Brave Erica Calella had 10 points.
Phelan Livingston’s team-high
16 came in vain for Kittatinny,
which falls to 7-11.
Newton 59, Kitatinny 53
Kittatinny (3-13)12 14
14 13 — 53
Newton (7-11) 10 17
14 18 — 59
Kittatinny: Livingston 16, Calella 10,
Place 6, Polizzo 10, Mueller 5, Kane 4,
Kott 2.
Newton: Zander 11, Ehehalt 6, Snyder
18, Takacs 21, Ferrari 3.
Hackettstown 58, Morris Cty Tech 28
Hack. (8-10) 22 17
11
8 — 58
MCT (0-6)
4
3
8 13 — 28
Hacketsown: Gavin 2, Young 2,
DiMartile 7, Glackin 3, Goldenburg 2,
Kayal 6, Sharples 8, Trudgeon 6, K.
Cenicacelaya 6, Dryburgh 2, O’Dell 2,
Shepard, Bordi 2, Molina, Arcona 4,
Smith 4, Delville 2, Laura.
Morris County: Finley 6, Noce 4,
Mucerio 6, Zipko 12, Graham, Navro.
Hackettstown 58,
Mt. Saint Mary 50
WANTAGE
—
Nicole
Armstrong had a game-high 18
points for the Wildcats in their
victory over Jefferson. Mikayla
Wingle scored 14.
Jefferson’s high-scorer Kim An
had seven.
Jefferson (9-9) 7
8
6 12 — 33
High Point (12-5)16 20
19
5 — 60
Jefferson: Bartke 2, Hazell 2,
Beckmann 6, Rowen 2, Miller 2,
Harrington 3, Simons 2, Esposito 2, Stern
HACKETTSTOWN — Emily
Kayal scored 24 points in
Hackettstown’s eight-point victory over Mt. Saint Mary.
Alison Young scored 18 for the
Tigers.
Hackettstown 58, Mt. Saint Mary 50
MS Mary (5-12)11
6
13 20 — 50
Hack, (7-10) 18 21
15
4 — 58
Hacketsown: A. Cenicacelaya 2,
Gavin, Young 18, DiMartile, Goldenburg
9, Kayal 24, Sharples 3, Trudgeon 2, K.
Cenicacelaya.
Mt. Saint Mary: Moczuca 6, Kennedy
10, O’Donnell 4, Romero 4, Anthony 10,
Quinn 2, Russomagno 14, Yu.
Gail Devers defies age with surprise victory
By ROB GLOSTER
AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK — Gail Devers still can outrun women a generation
younger. The 40-year-old Devers defeated a top field of hurdlers at the
Millrose Games, and makes it clear she has no intention right now of
retiring.
But that doesn’t mean she plans to come back full-time to the sport in
which she has starred since the 1980s. She has more important things to
deal with now.
“I have absolutely no plans. I was doing ballet with my daughter earlier today in her little tutu, so I’ll go back and do that,” she said. “This is
the one race I said I would run, the 100th Millrose Games.”
Devers, 19 months removed from giving birth to daughter Karsen,
was the surprise winner Friday night in the 60-meter hurdles. She edged
2004 Olympic champion Joanna Hayes and defeated a field that also
included Devers’ student, Danielle Carruthers, and former world champion Perdita Felicien.
“I wanted to come back at 40 and do something great for my fans, for
the people who supported me having a baby, saying please don’t retire,”
Devers said after winning in 7.86 seconds, the best time in the world this
season. “I say 40 is the new 20.”
Devers’ time was 0.12 off the U.S. record she set in 2003. The threetime world champion now also has won three Millrose hurdles titles.
Hayes was second in 7.91 and Carruthers third in 7.94.
“Gail is amazing. We didn’t expect her to win that race,” Hayes said.
“She got out great. Just from that first step out, she was in complete control.”
Devers raced one time in 2006, at the Millrose Games, finishing fourth
less than eight months after giving birth. She said she had a relatively
easy pregnancy, gaining 17 pounds and never having morning sickness,
but didn’t resume jogging until six months after delivering by Caesarean
section.
“She’s as strong as ever,” Carruthers said. “I think the baby has made
her stronger than she was before.”
Such a comeback is nothing new to Devers, who had a standout career
at UCLA in the late 1980s but was sidelined in 1989 and 1990 because of
Graves Disease, a thyroid abnormality that caused her feet to swell so
much she was within days of having them amputated.
WISHING IT WAS
BOATING SEASON?
SPARTA — Hopatcong edged
out Sparta 59-58 Friday night in
Sussex County Inscholastic boy’s
basketball. The Chiefs’ 10-point
first quarter led paved the way for
the upset. Hopatcong was led by
Andy Richards game-high 22.
Sean Rossi scored 7 for Sparta,
which drops to 14-3 with the loss.
Pat Coote had 19 for
Hopatcong. Teammates Mike
Tobin and Joe Martinek had 18
and 15.
Hopat. (10-8) 17 13
12 18— 59
Sparta (14-3) 7 16
12 18— 58
Hopatcong: Tobin 18, Coote 19, Del
Corpo 8, Bumbaco, Martinek 15.
Sparta: Rossi 7, Velez 2, Thompson 6,
Richards 22, Green 2, Kevil 6, Zeija 5,
Chang 3.
Lenape Valley 60,
Wallkill Valley 55
STANHOPE
—
Andrew
Ciampaglio propelled Lenape
Valley in its comeback over
Wallkill Valley. The senior guard
had 12 of his 20 points in the
fourth quarter. Teammate Dan
Bitondo added 16.
Wallkill was led by Paul
Boys Basketball Standings
Match
Game
Team
W
L
W L
Sparta
12
2
14 3
Vernon
11
3
12 4
Pope John
10
4
13 5
Hopatcong
8
6
10 7
High Point
6
8
9 9
Jefferson
7
7
9 9
Newton
6
8
9 8
Kittatinny
6
8
8 10
Lenape Valley
4
10
7 11
Wallkill Valley
0
14
1 16
Friday’s scores
Jefferson 49, High Point 43
Lenape Valley 60, Wallkill Valley 55
Monday’s games
Pope John at North Warren, 7 p.m.
Newton at Belvidere, 5:15 p.m.
Palazzollo’s 20 points. Xhevat
Vukel scored 16.
Lenape Valley 60, Wallill Valley 55
Wallkill V. (1-16)15 11
16 13— 55
Lenape V. (7-11)14 13
12 21— 60
Wallkill Valley: Palazzollo 20, Xhevat
Vukel 16, Xhelil Vukel 7, Didzbanis 12,
Powasnick, Caruso.
Lenape Valley: Ciampaglio 20, Bitondo
16, Carl 11, D. Wagenblast 12, Benack 1,
Phillips, S. Wagenblast, Fugger.
SPARTA — Rich Fazio dropped
16 for Vernon. Teammate David
Jacob scored 10 for Vernon.
Sam Mushman had 14 for the
Lions in the loss.
Vernon (12-4) 7 18
14 12— 51
PJ (13-5)
7 11
14
4— 36
Vernon: Fazio 16, Myhren 8, Sires 14,
Towers 3, Jacob 10.
Pope John: Mushman 14, Bucar 8,
Bays 7, Duncan 5, McCabe 2, McGrath.
HAMPTON — Junior Jeff
Carter scored a team high 12
points for Newton. He dropped
eight of his 12 in the third quarter.
Scott Paul added 10 for Newton.
Kittatinny’s Ryan Carroll had a
game-high 14 and D.J. Osborne
had eight.
Newton (9-8) 13 11
18 12— 54
Kittatinny (8-10) 9 13
14 14— 50
Newton: Crawn 8, Kienz, Gresik 9,
Paul 10, DiMarzo 8, Carter 12, Carr 7
Kittatinny: Carroll 14, D. Osborne 8,
Cerbo 4, Testino 6, Hayes 7, N. Osborne
2, Ryan 7, Stark 2.
HIGH SCHOOL HOCKEY
Jefferson hangs
with Hillsborough
By Herald Staff
HARDYSTON — Jefferson showed its success this season is no
fluke in a 2-2 tie with Hillsborough Saturday night at Skylands Ice
World.
The Falcons played a team two divisions higher and looked to be on
track for the win until Hillsborough’s Alex Merry scored his second
goal with just over two minutes left to play.
The Falcons led 2-1 after the first period thanks to goals from Dean
and Luke Combos. The teams played a scoreless second period before
Merry struck in the third. Jefferson goalie Chris Coffey stopped 33
shots, but had some help from defensemen Sean Mercer, Kevin Kelly,
Ryan Doka, Tommy Blazovik and Sean Tasker.
Hillsborough 2, Jefferson 2
Hillsborough (9-5-3)
1
0
Jefferson (15-1-1)
2
0
Goals: Alex Merry (H) 2, Dean Combos (J), Luke Combos (J).
Assists: Shane Hine (J), D. Combos (J), Max Novak (J).
Saves: Chris Coffey (J) 33, Eric Fisnovsky (H) 23.
1
0
—2
—2
Morristown 6, High Point 1
AUGUSTA — Foward Steve Genualdi scored twice as Morristown
defeated High Point 6-1 Friday night. The Colonials were led in net by
David Henckler who recorded 18 saves. Dan Zmanchianski and Dan
Schwartz each had two assists for Morristown.
High Point’s only goal came in the first period from Tom Primo.
Morristown 6, High Point 1
Morristown (15-4-1)
3
2
1
High Point (7-11-1)
1
0
0
Goals: Stellato, Primo, Genualdi 2, Brunen, Legalante, Barberio.
Assists: Legalante, Zmanchianski 2, Brunen, Schwartz 2, Genualdi, Stellato.
Saves: Henckler 18, Anderson 40.
—6
—1
St. Peter’s Prep 3, Pope John 2
HARDYSTON — Joey Drew and Scott Ruddy each scored goals for
Pope John Friday night, but it wasn’t enough to overcome St. Peter’s
Prep three-goal second period.
Pope John goalie Steve Messina stopped 15 shots.
St. Peter’s Prep 3, Pope John 2
St. Peter’s Prep (14-3-3)
0
3
0
Pope John (8-5-4)
0
1
1
Goals: Dellutri (S) 2, Musso (S), Drew (PJ), Ruddy (PJ).
Assists: Palmieri (S) 2, O’Donnell (S), Latta (PJ), Hero (PJ), Nicholson (PJ),
Johnson (PJ).
Saves: Steve Messina (PJ) 15, Kevin Fox (S) 27.
—3
—2
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B—4
SPORTS
Can Giants and Bonds survive 2007 season?
By JANIE McCAULEY
AP Sports Writer
season: Bonds breaking Hank Aaron’s
home run record in a Giants uniform and
the team returning to the playoffs after a
three-year absence.
“I think they’re going to have a whole
lot more to be excited about than just
Barry chasing records,” said former
Giants catcher Mike Matheny. “Barry
may be the best baseball player I’ve ever
seen, without a doubt. ... He can change a
game. He can change a team and he can
change an entire city.”
For good and bad.
There will be further speculation
about whether Bonds’ pursuit of the
record was fueled by steroids, fallout
from Bonds’ reported failed amphetamines test last season and a possible
indictment on perjury charges.
Bonds said he will go through this all
over again a year from now whether or
not he breaks Hammerin’ Hank’s mark,
saying, “I think I’ll be around until I’m
100, or at least try to.”
SAN FRANCISCO — Barry Bonds got
the big payday he believes he deserves
— even at age 42, with two cranky knees
and a surgically repaired elbow. The San
Francisco Giants got their way on several issues in the slugger’s free-agent contract.
That is, if Bonds signs the deal at last.
The constant drama that seems to surround this club and its superstar lasted
all winter long.
Everything seemed in place Monday
night, when the team announced it had
completed Bonds’ one-year contract
worth $15.8 million. Then the sides spent
the week squabbling over language and
interpretation of specific provisions. The
Giants drafted a new version and Bonds
still refused to make it official.
The big question now is whether they
can put their differences aside and
accomplish what both really want this
MLB: SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
His trainers are optimistic the record
will fall, even if they no longer can have a
dugout view of the slugger’s milestones.
As part of the new contract, Harvey
Shields and Greg Oliver are no longer on
the Giants’ payroll and won’t be allowed
in the clubhouse, where they had their
own lockers and used to hang out with
Bonds before games.
Bonds says that’s no big deal.
“Most of the time the workouts were
done away from the ballpark anyway,”
Oliver said in a phone interview. “It doesn’t bother me, either.”
Bonds has hinted he might pay for
both men — Oliver prefers to be identified as a performance specialist rather
than a trainer — to join him on road
trips.
Bonds was able to work out more this
offseason than the previous year and the
Giants hope that will lead to more play-
ing time than in 2006, increasing the
chance he will hit the 22 home runs he
needs to pass Aaron.
After missing all but 14 games in 2005
following three operations on his right
knee, Bonds batted .270 with 26 homers
and 77 RBIs and drew 115 walks in 130
games last year.
“Barry’s going to be in the best shape
he’s been in a while, so I’m excited,”
Oliver said. “The doctors wanted him to
lose some weight. He’s strong and he’s
very lean right now. I expect big things.
His legs are strong and he has leaned
out well.”
In Bonds’ contract, there also is language dealing with his behavior and
assurances for the team if he is indicted.
A federal grand jury is investigating
whether Bonds perjured himself when he
testified in 2003 in the Bay Area
Laboratory Co-Operative steroid distribution case that he hadn’t knowingly
taken any performance-enhancing drugs.
Bonds long has denied knowingly
using steroids.
Still, the Giants and Bonds couldn’t
even agree on the wording in the deal
after it apparently already was done.
Bonds agreed to a contract containing
a provision giving the team the right to
void the deal if he is indicted, but the
slugger’s agent, Jeff Borris, says the
provision is unenforceable under baseball’s collective bargaining agreement.
Owner Peter Magowan and Bonds
met Monday, the same day Bonds took
his physical, to clear the air and start
fresh. A day after the season ended,
Magowan had said Bonds would no
longer be the centerpiece of the franchise even if Bonds came back.
And Bonds spent Tuesday talking to
about 100 Giants employees at the ballpark, perhaps a sign of goodwill by
someone known throughout his career
for surly behavior.
GOLF
Els waits
for Woods’
challenge
The Associated Press
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates
— Even when he’s struggling with
his putter, Tiger Woods is the guy
opponents fear most.
So as Ernie Els goes into
Sunday’s final round at the Dubai
Desert Classic with a two-stroke
lead over three golfers, he’s looking beyond them to the player in
fifth place. That’s Woods, who is
three shots back.
Els shot a 4-under 68 Saturday
to total 17-under 199 after three
rounds, despite bogeying the first
and eighth holes. Woods shot a 67,
setting up a potential repeat showdown between the rivals. Els, a
three-time champion here, lost to
Woods in a playoff last year.
“He could get red hot at any
time,” Els said of Woods.
“Obviously you’ve got to watch the
number one player in the world.”
Second-round leader Ross
Fisher (71), Henrik Stenson (69)
and Jyoti Randhawa (67) shared
second. Fisher, an Englishman, led
the tournament its first two days
by shooting consecutive 65s.
Woods again had trouble on the
greens.
“I didn’t make any putts today. It
was frustrating,” Woods said. “I’ve
just struggled all week. The putts
that I hit well I misread. And then
I’ve hit just atrocious putts and didn’t even come close. I’ve got to
clean it up for tomorrow.”
Quinney holds on to
lead at FBR Open
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tour
rookie Jeff Quinney held on to a
two-stroke lead in front of a raucous, near-record crowd of 162,750
in the FBR Open.
Quinney, a former Arizona State
player and 2000 U.S. Amateur
champion, shot a 3-under 68 to
stand at 16-under 197 heading into
the final round Sunday.
Aaron Baddeley was second at
14 under after a 64, and Brett
Quigley (66) and Bart Bryant (68)
were three strokes back.
Quinney, a top-10 finisher in the
last two events, earned his PGA
Tour card after toiling five seasons
on the Nationwide Tour. He tied for
fourth two weeks ago in the Bob
Hope Classic and tied for seventh
last week in the Buick Invitational.
Quinney had six birdies and
three bogeys on the TPC
Scottsdale course, where the big
crowd was shy of the record
168,337 who watched the Saturday
round last year.
Webb takes 4-stroke
lead after 3 rounds
SYDNEY, Australia — Karrie
Webb took a big step toward her
third Women’s Australian Open
title, moving four shots clear of the
field with a 4-under 68.
Second-place Wei Yun-jye of
Taiwan, who trailed the Australian
by one shot after the second round
and played with Webb in the final
group Saturday, had a 71.
AP Photo/Terry Renna
NASCAR driver Tony Stewart, the two-time NASCAR champion, let his Nextel cup rivals grab all the headlines, choosing instead to fly way under the radar during his
brief winter break. The end result? A kinder, gentler, media-friendly Stewart? Not so fast, his car owner cautions.
It’s a kinder, gentler, media-friendly Stewart?
By JENNA FRYER
AP Auto Racing Writer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tony
Stewart didn’t crash a race car,
fall from a golf cart or announce
pending fatherhood during the offseason.
No, the two-time NASCAR
champion let his Nextel Cup
rivals grab all the headlines,
choosing instead to fly way under
the radar during his brief winter
break.
Stewart used his time to work
on his race teams and put the finishing touches on a new shop in
Indiana. He continued improvements at Eldora Speedway and
the other two race tracks he
owns, and settled into his new gig
as weekly host of his own Sirius
Satellite Radio show.
The end result? A kinder, gentler, media-friendly Stewart?
Not so fast, his car owner cautioned.
“He’s fooling you,” Joe Gibbs
joked. “He’ll turn on you in heartbeat, that’s what I found. You
never trust Tony — Tony goes
pretty good as long as it’s all
going Tony’s way. Just don’t ever
say ’No,’ and you’ll get along good
with Tony.”
Joking aside, the softer side of
Stewart is slowly creeping
through as he prepares for the
Unlike rivals, Tony Stewart stayed out of
the headlines during NASCAR’s offseason
2007 season and a run at this third
Nextel Cup title. Shut out of
NASCAR’s Chase for the championship last season, Stewart
wound up a career-worst 11th in
the final standings.
He’s still sarcastic and easily
irritated — and he was both during a brief interview session earlier this week in Las Vegas — but
after eight seasons on auto racing’s biggest stage, NASCAR’s
bad boy is learning how to chill
out just a bit.
While Greg Biffle crashed in
Las Vegas, Jimmie Johnson broke
his wrist while horsing around in
a golf tournament and Jeff
Gordon revealed he’s expecting
his first child, Stewart did his own
thing far away from the spotlight.
“We’ve been very, very busy
this winter. I just did stuff that I
am supposed to be doing at
home,” he said. “Just because we
didn’t break something doesn’t
mean we weren’t doing stuff.”
Much of Stewart’s busywork
focused on the life he’s developing
for when his driving days are over.
That includes fielding cars this
year for Levi Jones and Tracy
Hines in USAC’s Sprint and
Midget divisions, and a World of
Outlaws car for Paul McMahan.
Team ownership requires a stateof-the-art facility, which Tony
Stewart Racing now has in a
27,000-square foot shop in
Brownsburg, Ind.
Stewart also found time to
attend to his growing stable of
race tracks. Although he owns
famed Eldora outright, he’s also a
partner at Paducah (Ky.)
Speedway and Macon (Ill.)
Speedway.
And, he squeezed in a little
competition, winning the two
biggest January races on the
midget circuit — the Rumble in
Fort Wayne, Ind., and the Chili
Bowl in Tulsa, Okla. The Chili win
was his second in the “Super
Bowl of Midget Racing,” and he
holds the victories in high regard.
“Absolutely, most definitely, 100
percent,” Stewart replied when
asked if the Chili Bowl equals a
Cup title.
“You are racing against 282
entries, a record number, the best
midget drivers from the East
Coast to the West Coast and
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Australia. You get the best of the
business in dirt-track racing who
come to one place for the week
and battle it out to see who can
come out on top.”
It was Stewart in the end, proving just what a unique talent the
35-year-old driver is. To this day,
he remains the rare talent able to
win in anything on wheels. But
after eight years of squeezing
every possible extracurricular
race into his schedule, Stewart
finally has learned to pick and
choose.
Perhaps it’s because accidents
in non-Cup races last season left
him with a rib injury in January
and a broken collarbone in May.
Or it just might be that Stewart
is learning how to prioritize.
“He’s doing a good job of using
his time wisely,” said team president J.D. Gibbs. “He doesn’t wear
himself out by running off to every
deal that’s out there, and he can
make a lot of money doing a lot of
stuff. But he’s done a good job of
really scaling back, focusing on
what’s important and doing what
he enjoys.
“He’s in great shape, been
working out hard, and I think he
really feels good about where he
is, who he is and he does have a
peace about him.”
All that should add up to a
renewed focus on being back in
the thick of the championship
hunt. Despite not being eligible
for the title, he closed last year as
one of the hottest drivers in the
TRACK
series with three wins in the final
10 races.
In a sport where momentum is
everything, his two offseason
Midget wins have him headed
into the season-opening Daytona
500 on a roll.
“It’s a perfect way to start the
year,” Stewart said. “It’s nice to
start knowing we’ve already won
something.”
He’s also back for an eighth
season with Greg Zipadelli in the
longest active partnership
between a driver and a crew
chief. The two have had their ups
and downs because of Stewart’s
past antics, and it’s been
Zipadelli’s unwavering support
that many believe has held
Stewart’s Cup career together.
During all of Stewart’s drama
— from arguing with NASCAR,
rival drivers, fans and the media
— Zipadelli has done a remarkable job of assuring on-track
results because he’s always
believed Stewart would get his
act together.
“It was frustrating during
some of those tough times, but
you supported him to the extent
that we did because this is who
he is,” Zipadelli said. “Deep down
inside, he’s got a good heart, he
cares about people, he’s a normal
guy and I think that’s what you
are getting to see now.
“He’s learned through the situations he put himself in, he’s
been able to realize that all it
does is make his day, or his week,
or his month or his season a little
harder. His whole attitude on life
is better now. He’s enjoying himself more, and this is the Tony
we’ve always been behind.”
AND
FIELD
Defar sets world record
The Associated Press
STUTTGART, Germany — Meseret Defar set a women’s world
record in the indoor 3,000 meters Saturday in a race in which the top
two runners broke the old mark by more than 4 seconds.
The Ethiopian’s time of 8 minutes, 23.72 seconds beat the old mark
of 8:27.86 set by Liliya Shobukhova Schobukara of Russia on Feb. 17,
2006, in Moscow.
Defar, the Olympic champion at 5,000 meters, edged Messelech
Melkamu by 0.02. Both Ethiopians, running far ahead of the field, beat
the old record with a sprint over the final 300 meters.
(across from Inspection Station)
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B—5
SPORTS
NHL NOTEBOOK
Recchi still rolling at 39
By IRA PODELL
AP Sports Writer
Photo by Anna Murphey/NJH
The referee signals Jackson’s Rob Swan is still in control of High Point’s John Scalise in the 119-pound bout at High Point on Friday
night. Swan won 8-6.
Wildcats
back into the match after his 140-pound
bout, as he recorded a pin in 1:03.
Martin said he was pleased to score High
Point’s first points but hopes the team can
learn from the defeat.
“The loss gives us more drive,” Martin said.
Vinnie Gallo (171) and Joe Donahue (189)
added pins for High Point while Brad Thomas
(285) concluded the day with a win, even
though the outcome was no longer in doubt.
But there’s no need for High Point fans to
worry. The lopsided loss will be a distant memory on Tuesday, when the top-seeded Wildcats
will be home for their North I, Group III semifinal match against Paramus or Randolph. And
the Wildcats won’t have to contend with
Jackson on their path to a possible group title,
since the Jaguars are in Group IV.
Gardner said he hopes to get his regular
lineup back Tuesday. If the whole team can
wrestle the way the shorthanded team did
Friday, the Wildcats may end the season with
their first-ever group championship.
“The kids who were here (Friday) fought
hard,” Gardner said. “It’s more about performance than it is about score.”
Continued from Page B1
The best one came at 215, where High
Point’s Chris Smith lost to Dan Hopkins, 3-1,
in overtime. Smith escaped in the second
period and was headed for a 1-0 victory late
in the third. But in the final seconds, he was
penalized for stalling, much to the dismay of
the High Point faithful.
The bout was headed to overtime. And 47
seconds in, Hopkins ended it by taking
Smith down.
Smith said when he got to overtime he
tried not to think about the controversial
call. Still, he said he couldn’t help but ponder
what might have been.
“I thought I had him beat,” Smith said.
“The ref made a call and you can’t do anything about it.”
Gardner said he disagreed with the call
but wasn’t angry it was made.
“(The referees) aren’t trying to go against
one kid or the other,” he said. “That’s a judgment call.”
Earlier, Jackson took the matches at 112
and 119 by a total of three points. High
Point’s Billy Gould took Forbeck’s spot at
112 and fell to Kyle Kinchen, 4-3. Gould
scored his points on three escapes but never
took the lead.
High Point’s John Scalise lost to Rob
Swan, 8-6, at 119. The outcome was still in
doubt in the third period but Swan sealed it
with a takedown and an escape.
After Scalise dropped his bout, it got
worse for High Point. The Wildcats were
High Point’s Mark Kehoe and Jackson’s
Scott Winston face each other in the 152pound bout Friday night. Winston, who’s
never lost a high school match, won with a
major decision, 15-6.
down, 12-0, and lost the next three matches
by technical fall.
Greg Martin momentarily got the crowd
Jackson 43, High Point 21
103: Derrik Russell (J) p. Griffin Panicucci 2:39.
112: Kyle Kinchen (J) d. Billy Gould 4-3.
119: Rob Swan (J) d. John Scalise 8-6.
125: Brian Cohen (J) tf. Steve Butler 16-0 (4:24).
130: Corey Biscaha (J) tf. Mike Saporito 16-1 (5:08).
135: Joe Feaster (J) tf. Mike Blecker 15-0 (3:07).
140: Greg Martin (HP) p. Tyler Wilton 1:03.
145: Sean Byrnes (J) p. Jeremy Ramirez 5:37.
152: Scott Winston (J) md. Mark Kehoe 15-6.
160: Ken Carney (J) d. Ricky Cullen 12-7.
171: Vinnie Gallo (HP) p. Nick Tetro 3:05.
189: Joe Donahue (HP) p. Shane Carle 2:19.
215: Dan Hopkins (J) d. Chris Smith 3-1 (OT).
285: Brad Thomas (HP) d. Ryan Byrnes 4-1.
Records: Jackson 22-2, High Point 17-4
Kittatinny wrestling stumbles against Eastern
By Herald Staff
ABSECON — A handful of Kittatinny
wrestlers got a confidence boost from
Saturday’s tri-meet with Eastern and
Absegami.
The rest got a wake up call.
Kittatinny fell to Group IV Eastern, 34-26,
and beat Absegami, 53-10.
“We certainly went down there knowing our
hands were full,” Kittatinny coach John Gill
said. “(Eastern) came ready to wrestle. It’s a
compliment to us, but people want to beat
Kittatinny.”
The Cougars opened with a 10-0 lead after a
pin from Tommy Spellman and a major decision from Jake Weinrich. But the wheels quickly came off for Kittatinny, which lost four of the
next five matches — including Derek Valenti’s
first loss of the season.
“We haven’t had a bump in the road since
Phillipsburg,” Gill said. “I can’t explain it. We
didn’t have our typical fire in the belly, we just
had a bad day.
“Eastern worked for pins, and we just
worked for wins.”
The Cougars bounced back against
Absegami by winning 12 of the first 13 matches.
Spellman recorded his second first-round pin of
the day, and Valenti rebounded from his first
loss with a second-round pin. Zach Virga wrestled his second triple-overtime match of the
day, this time winning 6-2 despite trailing 2-1
early.
“This could be another wake up call,” Gill
said. “Whenever you don’t prepare, don’t get
emotionally up for it, bad things can happen.”
Eastern 34, Kittatinny 26
189: Tommy Spellman (K) p. Bob Price 1:43.
215: Jake Weinrich (K) md. Bob Bradis 10-2.
285: Chris Deichert (E) p. Steve Dell 3:56.
103: Chris Burdge (K) p. Dane Dillard :43.
112: Scotter Golden (E) md. Justin Zieba 12-3.
119: Mike Crowley (E) p. Zach Voris 4:03.
125: Hank Stinson (E) d. Derek Valenti 8-4.
130: Brian Bollette (K) d. Mark Maloney 12-6.
135: Troy Hernandez (K) md. Dave Newcomer 16-5.
140: Daymein Scott (E) d. Zach Virga 3-1 (3OT).
145: Preston Keiffer (E) p. Colby VanGorden 3:11.
152: Troy Branham (K) d. Joe Delany 3-1.
160: Phil Hook (E) d. Russel VanGorden 4-3.
171: Cedric Gonnet (E) d. Justin Junior 9-3.
Records: Kittatinny 19-5, Eastern 18-3
Kittatinny 53, Absegami 10
215: Jake Weinrich (K) md. Craig Capella 10-2.
285: Mike Grace (K) d. Jon Flegel 10-5.
103: Chris Burdge (K) p. Troy Willette 3:22.
112: Justin Zieba (K) d. Nick Librizzi 8-5.
119: Shane Ribinson (A) md. Zach Voris 14-1.
125: Derek Valenti (K) p. John Harvey 2:57.
130: Brian Bollette (K) p. Matt Dempsey 1:44.
135: Troy Hernandez (K) d. Brett Starr 10-4.
140: Zach Virga (K) d. Dillon Hammond 6-2 (3OT).
145: Troy Branham (K) d. Dave Foulke 12-5.
152: Russ VanGorden (K) won by forfeit.
160: Justin Junior (K) md. Randy Gons 13-1.
171: Phil Lorio (A) p. Zach Clark 3:47.
189: Tommy Spellman (K) p. Steve Hevalow 1:58.
Records: Kittatinny 20-5, Absegami
Waldwick Tri-Meet
WALDWICK — In their final tuneup before a
date at Kittatinny in the sectional team tournament on Tuesday, Newton won two matches
against teams with winning records Saturday.
First the Braves defeated Northern
Highlands 33-26 led by Ed Mattice’s 4-1 over-
HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING
time decision over the 285 Bergen County runner-up Zach Taylor.
“We have a lot of guys that are wrestling well
right now,” Newton coach Eric Bollette said.
“They’ve been steadily improving and that’s
what we’re looking for this time of the year.”
Newton 33, Northern Highlands 26
125: Ryan Unger (NH) d. Jared Zappa 3-1
130: Kyle Huber (N) p. David Dow 1:59
135: Tom Murphy (NH) p. Joe Daniele 2:29
140: Mike Malson (N) d. Dan Rehan 14-8
145: Derek Steuben (NH) tf. Elijah Reyes 19-3, 3:33
150: Austin Alpaugh (N) p. Derek Bach 1:18
160: Jeff Mason (N) d. Dean Azrieo 9-5
171: Jamie Meyers (NH) d. Ralph Carratura 13-11 (OT)
189: Brenden Kramer (N) d. Austin Roberts 17-11
215: Ben Kissane (N) p. Aram Shishmanian 1:55
285: Ed Mattice (N) d. Zach Taylor 4-1 (OT)
103: Kevin Churchill (N) d. Brandon Steuben 6-4
112: Paull Getto (NH) d. Kevin Antero 5-1
119: Fred Santiet (NH) p. Adam Armstrong :26
Newton 60, Waldwick 21
135: Oscar Yali (W) p. Joe Daniele 3:29
140: Mike Malson (N) p. Kevin Yali 2:47
145: Steven Anders (W) d. Elijah Reyes 9-7 OT
152: Austin Alpaugh (N) won by forfeit
160: Kevin Dishino (W) p. Shawn Beliveau 3:56
171: Jeff Mason (N) p. Kevin Pattman :54
189: Greg Patmen (W) p. Brendan Kramer 1:03
215: Ben Kissane (N) p. Tony Comito 5:29
285: Ed Mattice (N) won by forfeit
103: Kevin Antero (N) p. Eric Allen :42
112: Kevin Churchill (N) p. Jake Denofrio 1:00
119: Jared Zappa (N) p. Scott Roberts 1:40
125: Kyle Molitoris (N) p. Steve Banstra 2:34
130: Kyle Huber (N) p. Pedro Barahona :43
Records: Newton 19-6, Waldwick 12-10
Vernon 47, Lakeland 21
VERNON — Vernon more than doubled
Lakeland’s 21 points in its win on Saturday.
Rob Laurice pinned his opponent in under a
minute.
Vernon 47, Lakeland 21
103: Rob Laurice (V) p. Tommy Voter :57
112: Brian Hoyt (V) won by forfeit
119: Ryan Nelson (V) p. Matt Smith 3:47
125: Colton Chalkey (L) p. Mike Bihler 3:50
130: Joe Lerro (L) md. Chris Bihler 15-5
135: Scott Montegari (L) d. Dan Rich 10-6
140: Wayne O’Keefe (V) p. Kyle Bedell 3:20
145: Mike Park (V) d. Steve Madratowski 15-12
152: Casey Potdevin (L) d. Trevor McCullough 9-5
160: Loe Laurice (V) p. Greg Hills 1:11
171: Kyle Mueller (L) p. Brian Trovillian :52
189: Scott Roettger (V) tf. Dave Loftus 16-1
215: Matt Simons (V) won by forfeit
275: Eric Peine (V) d. Nick Zinhobi 8-3
Passaic Valley Quad Meet
LITTLE FALLS — Sparta lost two matches
on Saturday.
The first was a 48-29 loss to Passaic Valley
where Mike Pinto’s pin at 160 was a bright spot.
Then the Spartans fell to Fair Lawn 51-24.
Brandon Dock pinned Fair Lawn’s Anthoney
Melendez in 2:30.
Wallkill Valley split its matches at the Passaic
Valley Quad.
The Rangers defeated Fair Lawn 34-31 and
lost to Passaic Valley 40-30.
Freshman Ryan Callahan was the only
Ranger to win both his bouts.
Callahan won at 140 and 145.
At 125, Kodie Silvestri won by injury default
and by forfeit.
Passaic Valley 48, Sparta 29
103: Mike Sawey (S) p. Jason Cabretos 2:36
112: Rob Sotelo (PV) d. A.J. Cianni 5-3
119: Aslan Bachkaz (PV) p. Ryan Caruso :20
125: Andrew Greco (PV) d. John Bramley 10-4
130: Yamiz Bachkaz (PV) p. Ryan Deblock 1:32
135: Ryan Dunphy (PV) p. Alex Velella 2:46
140: Lou Racanelli (PV) p. Matt Hinks :57
145: Miguel Perez (PV) p. Mike Fortini 2:47
152: Joe Wassel (PV) p. John Whitney :53
160: Mike Pinto (S) p. Steve Lees 2:33
171: Randy Weems (PV) p. Sam Hansen :54
189: Phil Takacs-Senske (S) tf. Jake Pohlman 4:00
215: Brandon Dock (S) p. John Irwin 4:45
285: Alex Jelly (S) p. Brian Duva 3:41
Fair Lawn 51, Sparta 24
112: Sergio Grigorian (FL) d. A.J. Cianni 2-9
119: Shamil Musalaev (FL) p. Ryan Caruso :48
125: Joe Kover (FL) p. John Brahmley 5:01
130: P.J. Flores (FL) p. Alex Velell 1:34
135: Joe Yuskaitis (FL) tf. Ryan Deblock 4:13
140: Matt Hinks (S) p. Mike Szwed :47
145: Arsen Musalaev (FL) p. Mike Fortini 3:13
152: Aslan Musalaev (FL) md. John Whitney 10-2
160: Steve Smith (S) won by forfeit
171: Kevin Ramishvili (FL) p. Sam Hansen 1:57
189: Phil Takacs-Senske (S) won by forfeit
215: Ammet Basci (FL) p. Jermey Medina 2:11
285: Brandon Dock (S) p. Anthony Melendez 2:30
103: Kris Ax (FL) d. Mike Sawey 11-9
Passaic Valley 40, Wallkill Valley 30
103: Jason Cabretids (PV) p. Jeff Hilbert 1:10
112: Rob Sotelo (PV) p. Nathan Yahm 4:38
119: K.C. Murphy (WV) d. Aslan Bachkaz 8-1
125: Kodie Silvestri (WV) d. Andrew Greco Injury default.
130: Brandon Prentice (WV) p. Yamiz Bachkaz 3:44
135: Ryan Dunphy (PV) p. Travis Wenz 1:52
140: Ryan Callahan (WV) d. Lou Racanelli 9-2
145: Miguel Perez (PV) d. Evan Bowlby 9-6
152: Joe Wassel (PV) d. Mark Corsetta 10-9
160: Steve Weems (PV) p. Christian Kasa 1:00
171: Gio Ramirez (WV) d. Randy Weems 8-0
189: Jake Pohlman (PV) p. Jeff Apolito 3:22
215: Bryan Duva (PV) won by forfeit
285: John Irwin (PV) p. Travis Mullins 1:10
Wallkill Valley 34, Fair Lawn 31
103: Jeff Hilbert (WV) d. Kris Ax 3-2
112: Sergio Grigorian (PV) p. Nathan Yahm 3:29
119: Joe Kover (PV) d. K.C. Murphy 9-3
125: Kodie Silvestri (WV) won by forfeit
130: P.J. Flores (PV) Brandon Prentice 9-3
135: Travis Wenz (WV) d. Mike Swed 16-12
140: Joe Yuskaitis (PV) d. Evan Bowlby 18-5
145: Ryan Callahan (WV) d. Arsen Musalaev 10-0
152: Aslan Musalaev (PV) d. Mark Corsetta 5-1
160: Christian Kasa (WV) won by forfeit
171: Gio Ramirez (WV) dq. Kevin Ramishvil 6-0
189: Jeff Apolito (WV) d. T.J. Schaefer 6-0
215: Anthony Melendez (PV) won by forfeit
285: Ammet Basci (PV) d. Mike Goolsby 6-0
Bernards 55, Pope John 13
Mark Recchi is at that point in his NHL career where numbers
matter. The figure that seems the least important is 39 — the age
of the still high-flying forward.
It’s not hard to feel young in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ dressing
room, where Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have taken over the
offensive load before they are even old enough to drink.
“I was trying to hide that,” Recchi said of his age. “It’s obviously
been great.”
Recchi, who celebrated his birthday Thursday, is third in
Penguins scoring behind his kid teammates. They can only hope at
this point to hit the 500-goal milestone that Recchi recently
reached.
Like Mats Sundin, who has averaged about a point a game in
1,200 contests, Recchi has kept up that pace in 1,300 NHL games.
With those credentials and two Stanley Cup rings from his first
stint with the Penguins and another last season with Carolina,
Recchi should receive significant consideration for the Hockey Hall
of Fame once he finally hangs it up.
“That’s what keeps me going,” he said of the quest for championships. “I look at our team right now and I see a contender in the
not too far distance here. That’s what I play for. Ultimately that’s
what we all play for. You get a taste of it and you want to keep
going. I’d like to take another run at it again.”
Recchi became the 38th NHL player to score 500 when he netted
two last week during a shootout win at Dallas. He has 501 goals
and 1,313 points in 1,306 games over 18 seasons — placing him 28th
on the career scoring list.
His deal with the Penguins is set to expire after the season, but
Recchi is looking to stay in Pittsburgh into his 40s.
“I obviously love what I see here. I’d like to be part of that
again,” Recchi said. “You never know come summertime whether
the organization wants to go a different direction. But obviously I
like it here and I like these young guys and I like where they’re
going.”
Hurricane Warning
Matt Cullen and Aaron Ward missed the banner-raising ceremony honoring the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes on
opening night.
By that time, they were knee deep into the transition period with
their new club, the New York Rangers.
Breaking away from the bunch on the eve of the season didn’t
seem right, but four months later Cullen and Ward got another
chance to celebrate with their former teammates. They made
plans for a pre-dawn trip Friday to Washington to meet up with the
rest of the Hurricanes and head to the White House for an appearance with President Bush.
“It’s a little bit of a weird feeling,” Cullen said. “I thought they’d
maybe do it more in the summer. But whatever, they’re all good
friends. We’re all part of it together so it’ll be easy to separate.
“Go there, have fun with the guys, but with the tight race it’ll be
able to get the focus back in.”
The Rangers had Friday off and were traveling to Tampa, Fla., in
advance of Saturday’s game with the Lightning. Cullen and Ward
were set to head south later in the day after the East Room ceremony.
“We’ll be there by dinner time,” Cullen said.
Scoring Late
Waiting until the last minute isn’t always so bad.
Dallas defenseman Philippe Boucher scored the NHL’s 26th
final-minute tying goal this season when he connected with 2.2 seconds remaining in regulation at San Jose on Tuesday. The late
heroics turned into two points as the Stars eventually beat the
Sharks in a shootout.
Zach Parise became No. 27 when he netted the tying goal for
New Jersey with 31.8 seconds left at Philadelphia on Thursday. The
Devils defenseman doubled the excitement when he scored the
winner with only 49.5 seconds showing on the overtime clock.
Brian Gionta, the Devils’ 5-foot-7 spark plug, has turned the trick
into an art form. Benefiting greatly by rules that allow him to get
in close to the net without getting clobbered, Gionta has scored an
NHL-leading three tying goals in the final minute of games this
season.
In those games, the Devils defeated Toronto and Philadelphia
and lost to Nashville.
Of the teams who beat the regulation buzzer, 18 ended up winning. At this point last season, there were 22 goals netted in the
closing minute that tied games.
RECLINERS
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SPARTA — Pope John was on the losing end
of a lop-sided score Saturday.
Bernards took 10 bouts with four pins.
At 152 Frank Pariso pinned his opponent in
2:49.
Bernards 55, Pope John 13
103: Double forfeit
112: Clay Schuler (B) dec. Mike Deore 4-2
119: Justin Schaufler (B) won by forfeit
125: Anthony Palma (B) pinned John MacKenzie 3:23
130: Anthony Koert (PJ) dec. Arlen Mase 12-0
135: Rich Russoniello (B) dec. Thomas Wilson 11-1
140: Joe Hayes (PJ) dec. Joe Homza 3-0
145: Billy Youngblood (B) won by forfeit
152: Frank Pariso (PJ) pinned Kyle Sauri 2:49
160: Alvero Gonzalez (B) pinned Phil Carolan 0:37
171: Marty Fauldron (B) pinned Dan McCormick 4:37
189: Mat Birmingham (B) won by forfeit
215: Max Fawcett (B) won by forfeit
285: Shadi Zaiton (B) pinned Christian Sawaszczyk 1:58
Records: Pope John 2-16, Bernards 10-10.
Byram Carpet & Furniture
Family Owned and Operated - Since 1976
Route 206, Byram, NJ 973-347-4883
HOURS:
MON-FRI 10 AM-8 PM
TUES, WED, THUR, 10 AM-5 PM
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MAJOR CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED
B—6
’
...
Offense
Offense
Total net yards: 6,070
Passing
Rushing
Total net yards: 5,199
Passing
Rushing
4,308
1,762
First downs: 376
Passing
3,281
First downs: 300
Passing
Rushing
Rushing
241
1,918
161
112
103
By penalty 36
By penalty 23
8 Rex
Grossman
Made more big plays
in the postseason than
bonehead ones, and
if he isn’t severely
pressured, he makes
good decisions.
18 Peyton
Manning
Has so many
weapons that the
Bears might need to
scrap some of their
cover-2 pass defenses
and gamble on man
coverage.
20 Thomas
Jones
29 Joseph
Addai
ATT
YDS
226 1,081
AVG
LG
TD
4.8
41
7
ATT YDS AVG
296 1,210 4.1
Providing protection
RUSHING
Dominic Rhodes
Peyton Manning
ATT
187
23
YDS AVG TD
641 3.4 5
36 1.6 4
RECEIVING
REC YDS AVG TD
Marvin Harrison
95 1,366 14.4 12
Reggie Wayne
86 1,310 15.2 9
Ben Utecht
37 377 10.2 0
Dallas Clark
30 367 12.2 4
Joseph Addai
40 325 8.1 1
Dominic Rhodes
36 251 7.0 0
Bryan Fletcher
18 202 11.2 2
Brandon Stokley
8
85 10.6 1
Aaron Moorehead
8
82 10.3 1
Ricky Proehl
3
30 10.0 0
Dan Klecko
1
2 2.0 1
FIELD GOALS 1-29 30-39 40-49 50+
Adam Vinatieri
4/4 12/13 9/10 0/1
POS PLAYER
Tarik Glenn
WR Marvin Harrison
QB
Peyton Manning
C
Jeff Saturday
LG
Center
63 Jeff 65 Ryan
Saturday Lilja
LT
78 Tarik
Glenn
The Colts must get a surge from center Saturday and
guards Lilja and Scott to offer some balance on the ground.
If they can protect Manning, particularly when Bears’ rookie
sackmaster Mark Anderson is in the game, some deep
throws could be open.
he game’s top QB finally gets
his chance at a ring, the first
two black coaches in history are also
close friends and, like so many past
Super Bowls, an elite defense takes
on an explosive offense. History will
be made once again this Super
Sunday when two defenders of the old
guard collide for a chance at the
Lombardi Trophy.
T. Johnson
35 • SS
RT
RG
Center
LG
LT
69 Fred 63 Roberto 57 Olin 74 Ruben 76 John
Miller
Garza
Kreutz
Brown
Tait
N. Vasher
31 • RCB
One of the more likeable people
in sports, is also one of the
winningest. With the most
balanced team he’s coached to
date, and
leadership at
key
positions,
Dungy
seems
poised
for his
first
championship.
Tampa Bay
(1996-01)
Indianapolis
(2002-06)
Regular season
L
PCT
114 62 .648
Postseason
8 8 .500
TOT 122 70 .655
A. Brown
96 • RE
The game will feature
strength against
strength with the Colts
offense, ranked third
during the regular
season, going against
a Bears defense
that finished the
season ranked
fifth overall.
T. Glenn
78 • LT
Pro Bowlers (7)
B. Utecht
86 • TE
Ryan Diem
71 • RT
H. Smith
17 • P
J. Addai
29 • RB
The NFL pays for up to 150
rings – up to $5,000 each – for
the winner, and for up to 150
pieces of jewelry for the runnerup. The runners-up jewelry
must cost no more than half of
the winners.
2,768
With the 5-8, 206-pound dynamo
Sanders, the Colts will play eight
men up and dare the Bears to
throw on early downs, particularly
first. Indy has seven postseason
sacks, and Dwight Freeney is, by
far, their most dangerous pass
rusher. Bears must watch for blitzes
from the secondary.
Manning
GAME, YARDS
1
276
2 Highest
400
3
219
4
217
5 Lowest
166
6 Bye week
7
342
8
345
9
326
10
236
11
254
12
183
13
351
14
313
15
282
16
205
17
282
WC
268
Div
170
Conf
349
SOURCES: National Football League; Elias Sports Bureau
RANK
324.9
119.9
205.1
26.7
294.1
99.4
194.8
15.9
36.8 %
15
15
14
2*
5
6
11
3
22
Brendan Ayanbadejo
Lance Briggs
Robbie Gould
Tommie Harris
Devin Hester
Olin Kreutz
Brian Urlacher
Lovie Smith
Worked as LB coach under
Dungy with the Bucs. Now the
2005 Coach of
the Year faces
his mentor,
joining him as
the first
AfricanAmerican
coach
in Super
Bowl
history.
Chicago
(2004-06)
W
$750,000
$375,000
J. McKie
37 • FB
F. Miller
69 • RT
Defense
R. Garza
63 • RG
N. Harper
25 • LCB
R. Mathis
98 • LE
A. McFarland
92 • LT
O. Kreutz
57 • C
R. Brown
74 • LG
J. Tait
76 • LT
B. Berrian
80 • WR
J. David
42 • RCB
Cato June
59 • OLB
A. Bethea
41 • SS
Peyton Manning (9th year) • Tennessee
ATT COMP
REG SEASON 557
POSTSEASON 115
362
72
PCT
YDS TD INT
65.0 4,397 31
62.6
787 2
Field
generals
With two Pro-Bowl
WRs and clutch TE
Dallas Clark, Manning
will challenge the
Bears’ feared cover-2.
Grossman is a wild
card. His problem is
inconsistency. Keys to
his success: protection
and avoiding mental
mistakes.
Building
blocks
D. Freeney
93 • RE
G. Brackett
58 • MLB
B. Sanders
21 • FS
Total net yards
allowed: 5,199
Passing
D. Clark
88 • TE
R. Brock
79 • RT
R. Morris
94 • OLB
RTG
9 101.0
6 66.8
LEFT SIDE
Under 15
yards
Manning
Grossman
15 yards
or more
MIDDLE
RIGHT
Under 15
yards
15 yards
or more
Under 15
yards
15 yards
or more
The Colts
brought more of
their players to the
team through the
draft, while the Bears
were evenly split
between drafted players
and free agent signings.
27
Draft
4
Trade
20
Free
agents
24
2
Waivers
2
24
480
64
COMP
262
32
PCT
YDS
54.6 3,193
50.0
426
COMP
ATT
TD
INT
124
85
25
24
180
142
57
48
8
7
4
6
2
4
1
2
40
13
12
3
57
26
20
9
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
132
115
29
22
186
191
57
64
13
5
4
4
3
7
1
5
TD
23
2
INT
1,590
INT
NO
Ricky Manning 5
Charles Tillman 5
Nathan Vasher 3
Brian Urlacher 3
Lance Briggs
2
Alex Brown
2
Chris Harris
2
Danieal Manning 2
SACKS
NO
Mark Anderson 12
Alex Brown
7
A. Ogunleye
6.5
Tommie Harris 5
3
The Bears shut down runs up the
middle by the NFC’s best offense
when they beat the Saints for the
conference title. It’s unlikely Addai
and Rhodes will have a great
impact running to the outside against
active ends Ogunleye and Brown,
All-Pros Urlacher and Briggs.
Grossman
GAME, YARDS
RTG
20 73.9
1 75.4
Rushing
3,116
Rex Grossman (4th year) • Florida
ATT
PCT
R. Gould
9•K
R. Grossman
8 • QB
The 2005
Patriots
ring
L
29 19 .604
P
2 1 .667
TOT 31 20 .608
B. Maynard
4•P
T. Jones
20 • RB
M. Muhammad
87 • WR
Jewelry costs per team:
INT
NO
Nick Harper
3
Cato June
3
Jason David 2
Mike Doss
2
RANK
379.4 3
110.1 18*
269.2 2
26.7 2*
332.3 21
173.0 32
159.2 2
22.5 20
56.1% 1
SP
LB
K
DL
KR
C
LB
Regular season
Total net yards
allowed: 5,316
2,548
*Tie
Total offense
Rush
Pass
Points scored per game
Total defense
Rush
Pass
Points allowed per game
3rd-down conversions
Ring bling
Defense
Rushing
M. Harrison
88 • WR
D. Clark
44 • TE
A. Vinatieri
4•K
Winner
Runner-up
The Colts and Bears
scored the same amount of
points this year – 427 each.
C. Tillman
33 • LCB
J. Scott
73 • RG
P. Manning
18 • QB
Season
statistics
A. Ogunleye
93 • LE
J. Saturday
63 • C
NOTE: The league also pays for any
increases in gold and diamond prices.
Passing
T. Johnson
99 • LT
R. Lilja
65 • LG
AVG TD
14.4 5
15.2 6
13.9 6
13.8 2
20.1 3
6.5 0
4.3 0
14.7 0
17.0 0
6.8 0
6.3 2
9.3 0
-4.0 0
POS PLAYER
H. Hillenmeyer
92 • OLB
I. Scott
95 • RT
YDS
863
775
626
303
282
162
154
88
68
54
38
37
-4
FGS
20-29 30-39 40-49 50
Robbie Gould 6/6 14/16 12/14 0/
L. Briggs
55 • OLB
D. Manning
38 • FS
R. Wayne
87 • WR
ATT YDS AVG TD
157 647 4.1 6
10
41 4.1 2
8
18 2.3 0
2
5 2.5 0
24
2 0.1 0
6
-5 -0.8 0
RECEIVING
REC
Muhsin Muhammad
60
Bernard Berrian
51
Desmond Clark
45
Rashied Davis
22
Mark Bradley
14
Jason McKie
25
Thomas Jones
36
Adrian Peterson
6
Justin Gage
4
Cedric Benson
8
John Gilmore
6
Gabe Reid
4
Rex Grossman 1
T
Probable
starters
Tony Dungy
SACKS
NO
Robert Mathis 9.5
Dwight Freeney 5.5
RUSHING
Cedric Benson
Adrian Peterson
Jason McKie
Bernard Berrian
Rex Grossman
Brian Griese
B. Urlacher
54 • MLB
WR Reggie Wayne
W
RG
73 Jake
Scott
One of the best units in the NFL, the Bears are
anchored by All-Pro center Kreutz, veteran
tackles Tait and Miller and guards Brown
and Garza. Grossman has trouble reading
blitzes, but the Colts are not a blitzing team.
Pro Bowlers (5)
S
RT
71 Ryan
Diem
TD
6
Likely to handle the bulk of the load,
has four rushing TDs to go with 189
yards in two playoff games. With
Cedric Benson forms a solid but
unspectacular duo.
Meeting
in
The offensive lines:
Explosiveness in open field on first
and second downs; power runner
Dominic Rhodes used on thirddown short yardage situations.
LG
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Div
Conf
262
289
278
232
182
144
Bye week
252
210
246
119
176
34
200
339
Highest
197
33 Lowest
282
144
Ed DeGasero, Janet Hamlin, Jake O’Connell • AP
B—7
SPORTS
The Pros
A seven-day planner for local sports
Today
5M
6 Tu
7W
8 Th
New York Knicks
9F
www.nba.com\knicks
At Utah
9 p.m.
MSG2
L.A. Clippers
7:30 p.m.
MSG
New Jersey Nets
Atlanta
Noon
YES
www.nba.com\nets
At Atlanta
7 p.m.
YES
At
Philadelphia
7 p.m.
YES
At Boston
7:30 p.m.
YES
New York Rangers
Detroit
7 p.m.
VERSUS
10 Sa
Orlando
7:30 p.m.
YES
www.newyorkrangers.com
At New
Jersey
7:30 p.m.
MSG2
Tampa Bay
7 p.m.
MSG
New Jersey Devils
At
Washington
7 p.m.
MSG
www.newjerseydevils.com
New York
Rangers
7:30 p.m.
FSNY
New York
Islanders
7 p.m.
MSG
Community Calendar
Times and locations for today’s local sports events
Ice Hockey
Parsippany Hills at Sparta, at Skylands, 3:15 p.m.
Around the dial
Today’s TV and radio listings
Basketball
2 p.m.
College: Florida St. at Duke
2:30 p.m.
NBA: Detroit at Cleveland
Bowling
2 p.m.
PBA: Sun City Classic
Football
6:25 p.m.
NFL: Super XLI
Golf
8:30 a.m.
EuroPGA: Dubai Desert Classic (t)
3 p.m.
PGA: FBR Open
Women’s basketball
4 p.m.
College: Missouri at Iowa St.
2 a.m. (Mo.) College: California at Stanford (t)
NFL: HALL
OF
TV
FSN
ABC
ESPN
CBS
TGC
NBC
FSN
FSN
AP Photo/Michael Conroy
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning stares off as he stretches before the start of football practice at the Miami Dolphins
training facility in Davie, Fla. Thursday. The Colts face the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI in Miami tonight.
All for One
FAME
Super Bowl a chance to erase memories, add more for Mannings
By TIM DAHLBERG
AP Sports Writer
AP Photo/Bill Kostroun
Dallas Cowboys’ Michael Irvin was elected to the Pro Football
Hall of Fame on Saturday.
Irvin, five others
elected to Hall
By BARRY WILNER
AP Football Writer
MIAMI — Michael Irvin was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
on Saturday despite a troubled past, though voters denied entry to
retired NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
The former Dallas Cowboys receiver, who won three Super Bowls in
the 1990s, got in on his third try.
Irvin pleaded no contest in 1996 to felony cocaine possession. Four
years later, he was arrested on drug possession charges, but they were
later dropped.
The 40 Hall voters were criticized by two of Irvin’s former teammates,
Emmitt Smith and Troy Aikman, for previously bypassing the wideout,
who retired in 1999.
They didn’t ignore him this time.
Tagliabue was eliminated in the first round of voting.
Also voted in were running back Thurman Thomas, offensive lineman
Bruce Matthews, defensive back Roger Wehrli and two nominees of the
veterans’ committee — tight end Charlie Sanders and guard Gene
Hickerson.
Inductions will be Aug. 4-5 in Canton, Ohio. The Steelers and Saints
will play in the annual Hall of Fame game.
Also failing to get enough votes were Art Monk, Derrick Thomas,
Andre Reed, Richard Dent, Bob Kuechenberg, Fred Dean, Ray Guy,
Russ Grimm, Andre Tippett and Gary Zimmerman.
Irvin finished his career with 750 receptions for 11,904 yards and 65
touchdowns. He was selected to five straight Pro Bowls and picked for
the NFL’s all-decade team of the 1990s.
“It’s such a great honor,” he said. “It’s an honor you cannot reach without playing on a bunch of great football teams and playing with some
great guys. I started out playing here in Fort Lauderdale. ... I played college up the street at the University of Miami. I was blessed also to play
with the Dallas Cowboys.
“You can’t play at three better stops than that,” he said.
Irvin thanked Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and referred to Aikman as
“my very favorite, my quarterback, Troy Aikman ... he’s always in my corner and I thank him for being in my corner all the time.”
Thomas was the league’s most valuable player in 1991, when he
gained more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage. When he retired in 2,000,
he ranked sixth all-time in career yards from scrimmage (16,532), including 12,074 yards rushing. Only Emmitt Smith and Barry Sanders ran for
more yards in the 1990s.
He joins Jim Kelly, who made the Hall of Fame in 2002, from the
Buffalo teams that won four straight AFC titles before losing in each
Super Bowl.
His 13 seasons with 50-plus receptions, nine of them in a row, are
exceeded only by Jerry Rice. He joins Jim Kelly, who made the Hall of
Fame in 2002, from the Buffalo teams that won four straight AFC titles
before losing in each Super Bowl.
“Wow. I don’t know what to say,” Thomas said. “It’s just a beautiful day
for my wife, for my kids, the Buffalo Bills organization, the fans of Buffalo.
Like I’ve always said, we didn’t win a Super Bowl, but this is my Super
Bowl gift to the Buffalo Bills fans.”
Matthews, the only player in his first year of eligibility, spent 19 seasons with the Oilers/Titans franchise, playing more games than any positional player in NFL history when he retired in 2001. He did it as a guard,
tackle and center. Matthews never missed a game because of injury.
“I never had to grow up, could play like I was a kid, played till I was 40,
and now you are telling me I am in the Hall of Fame,” he said by phone
from Texas. “I hadn’t been nervous about it until I saw my family and
they were ready to melt down.”
Wehrli was a five-time All-Pro cornerback who played 14 seasons with
the St. Louis Cardinals, starting as a rookie in 1969. He once intercepted
three passes by Roger Staubach in a win over Dallas and made the
league’s 1970s all-decade squad.
MIAMI — Archie Manning
stood nervously in the tunnel
leading to the field in Indianapolis
during the final minutes of a
comeback that would put his middle son in the Super Bowl for the
first time.
He didn’t want the television
cameras to see him, didn’t want to
intrude on the spotlight.
He could barely bring himself
to watch.
The head of football’s most
famous quarterback family had
endured countless losing seasons
as a player himself. Now he was
just a proud father, peeking
around the corner and praying
that his son would succeed where
he never had the chance.
Eli Manning, his youngest,
paced next to him as the final seconds ticked off the clock and the
RCA Dome erupted in jubilation.
The Colts were going to the
Super Bowl. A Manning finally
had won a big one.
In the bedlam, Peyton Manning
looked for his dad and his brother.
The quarterback father and his
quarterback sons embraced in a
hug born of jubilation and relief.
“Maybe,” Archie Manning said,
“there was a little fate there.”
If any family deserved some
good karma on the football field, it
might be the Mannings.
And, if any father deserved a
good moment from the NFL, it
surely would be Archie Manning.
“Obviously my dad knows how
difficult it is to get there,” Eli
Manning said. “He played 15 seasons and never made it to the
playoffs. He knows it’s not easy.
Everything has to go the right
way.”
Nothing ever seemed to go the
right way for Archie Manning in
the NFL. In a decade and a half,
he never played for a winning
team, never came close to sniffing
the postseason.
His team had records like 1-15
and 3-13. Winning a handful of
games in one season was cause
for celebration.
Things were so bad in New
Orleans that fans began wearing
paper bags over their head
because they were embarrassed
to be in the same stadium with
their Aints. The Super Bowl wasn’t a goal for this gang of misfits,
merely something to watch while
grilling burgers on a Sunday
afternoon.
The losses came early, and they
came often. By the time Manning
finished 15 years in the NFL in
1984, he had walked off the field
with the losing team 139 times.
He did it with his head held
high.
“I don’t look back on it like that,
but people do it for me,” he said.
“Why do that? When I was a kid
all I wanted to do was play. I wanted to be a ball player. And I got to
do it for 14 years, through the
good, the bad and the injuries.”
Still, Manning wanted better for
his quarterback kids.
They have had their own struggles, despite playing on teams
loaded with the kind of talent that
only came to New Orleans for an
occasional Super Bowl in Archie
Dahlberg
“I’m not a bad guy,” Schlichter insisted on
the phone the other day. “I just made some
bad decisions.”
You want to believe he’s a changed man.
But try telling that to the Indiana man living
on military disability who lost $2,700 to
Schlichter in a scam involving phony Final
Four tickets.
Try telling that to the former doctor who
was conned out of $145,000 after meeting
Schlichter in a program for people with
addictive behavior. She thought she was
going to get paid back, but the checks
Schlichter gave her had been stolen from
his father.
Try telling that to hundreds of others who
fell victim to the handsome, personable former quarterback and his bagful of scams.
There are so many marks, so many stories, that even Schlichter is weary of talking
about them.
“Just look up the old stuff,” he said. “It’s
all there.”
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
Schlichter was a star at Ohio State, a dashing quarterback who finished fifth in the
Heisman voting his senior year before being
selected by the then-Baltimore Colts with
the fourth pick of the 1982 draft.
He got a $350,000 signing bonus, but the
racetrack beckoned and there were games
to bet. He made the mistake of chasing bad
bets with good money, and soon was so deep
in debt with Baltimore bookies that he was
forced to confess to the NFL to avoid get-
Super Bowl
If the Bears control the clock
with Thomas Jones and Cedric
Benson running the ball, it keeps
Manning off the field and allows
Grossman more opportunities. In
other words, he gets more time
to throw and Dwight Freeney
and the rest of Indy’s quick
defenders get less time to pressure him into making mistakes.
Manning isn’t immune to
turnovers. He’s thrown six interceptions in three playoff games,
including one returned for a
touchdown by New England’s
Asante Samuel in the AFC championship game. That’s five more
AP Photo/Lennox McLendon, File
Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Art
Schlichter, right, is escorted from the
Federal Court building in Las Vegas by
Federal Marshals in this Nov. 10, 1994 file
photo.
ting hurt.
His bookie would later testify that
Schlichter bet on almost every NFL team
but his own. The only reason he didn’t, the
bookie said, was that the Colts were a lousy
team at the time.
He had played in only 13 games by the
time the NFL banned him for good in 1987.
That same year he lost $20,000 the week
after the players went on strike and was
than Grossman, Mr. Turnover,
who has one in the playoffs.
But Manning is too savvy to
force anything; savvy enough to
know that punting is a better
alternative to throwing into coverage, especially with the way
Urlacher can drop into the deep
middle like the safety he was in
college.
Most important, Manning finally demonstrated he can produce
under pressure with his 80-yard
drive in the final minutes against
the playoff-tested New England
defense.
Beyond that, these Colts are
following a path similar to one
taken by a team Manning wants
to emulate: the 1997 Denver
Broncos.
Those Broncos were eliminat-
Manning’s day.
Peyton Manning labored for
years with the label “Never Able
to Win the Big One” seemingly
plastered directly over the No. 18
on his uniform. He has his
father’s arm and talent, but in
eight years as quarterback of the
Colts the Super Bowl was always
tantalizingly just out of reach.
Eli Manning came into the
league with great fanfare, but the
results after three years so far
have been mixed. New Yorkers
grumble about his inconsistency
as quarterback of the Giants and
he often seems flustered on the
field.
Could there be such a thing as
a Manning curse?
“Nobody has ever asked me
that,” Archie Manning said. “I’d
say absolutely not. I was one of
those kids who just wanted to play
and I did it for 15 years. I wouldn’t
look at anything Peyton did in his
career, whether high school, college, or pro, as any kind of curse.
And Eli, well, it’s just his second
year as the starter.”
$800,000 in debt by the time the strike
ended.
“Gambling was like a high to me, just like
drugs or alcohol are to others,” Schlichter
said. “The rush of winning is part of it, but
it’s also a distraction from pain or problems
you’re having in your life.”
Schlichter is 46 now. Had his life gone
another way, he might be at the Super Bowl
schmoozing with old friends and being
wined and dined as an honored member of
the Colts family.
Instead, he’s just getting used to the idea
of not living behind bars after spending 10 of
the last 12 years in various prisons. He
swears he finally gets it this time, and that
he wants nothing more out of life now than
to help others who have the same addiction.
“There comes a point you either want to
live or die and I wanted to live,” Schlichter
said. “For me, one thing I couldn’t do was
gamble. I had to learn to live with that idea
in my head.”
Schlichter was saying all this the other
day as he was driving to Indianapolis to
watch his daughters play basketball. He
seemed earnest.
He knows he wasted his talent, understands he nearly wasted his life.
“I’d be lying if I said I never thought
about what might have been,” he said.
You want to believe him, want him to
make something of the rest of his life.
But then you remember that he’s conned
people before.
Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him
at tdahlbergap.org
ed in their first game in 1996
after clinching home field with a
month to go. And like this year’s
Colts, who lost four of its last
seven games, those Broncos
struggled a bit, making the postseason as a wild-card team
before sweeping through the
playoffs and beating Green Bay
31-24 in the Super Bowl.
Last winter, Manning made a
point of talking to the two leaders
of that team: John Elway and
coach Mike Shanahan. Last summer, he suggested that it might
not be a bad thing if the Colts had
a lower profile for the 2006 season than they had in 2005, when
they won their first 13 games.
“You’ve got a team that’s a little ticked off,” Manning said,
referring to last year’s playoff
failure. “There are guys who will
play that way. I think you need
that to rebound from last season.”
There’s one more thing the
Colts need to do to emulate those
Broncos.
No, Manning is unlikely to do a
spinorama for a first down, as
Elway did in the signature play of
that game.
But his gestures and waves at
the line of scrimmage, often a
ruse, may not be this time —
he’ll point at the holes in the
Chicago defense at safety and
defensive tackle, vacated by the
injured Mike Brown and Tommie
Harris.
That’s enough to make the
final score:
COLTS, 31-23.
B—8

sun 0204/sports b1

Transcription

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