Archive for August, 2008

Nice opening week

Sunday, August 31st, 2008

Some quick thoughts on the opening week of the Monroe County Region high school football season:

1. It was great to see Summerfield and New Boston Huron, two teams that have struggled in recent years, get off to impressive starts. They didn’t face great opponents, but winning by a combined score of 83-8 has to be a great confidence booster for those two programs.

2. I felt awful for Coach Steve Pollzzie and his Monroe High team. The Trojans had a 21-9 lead and were inches away from another touchdown when momentum suddenly turned against them. They lost 22-21 to Walled Lake Western.

3. I was surprised when SMCC coach Jack Giarmo told me he was starting eight sophomores. I knew the Falcons were young, but not that young.

4. New Gibraltar Carlson coach Kent Sikora is getting his career off to a strange start. His Marauders opened by whipping a Grosse Ile team coached by his former college roomate, John Bodner. In Week 2, he goes up against his alma mater — Allen Park. Carlson’s first four games are on the road.

5. Milan’s defense must be pretty good. Ypsilanti featured a player who is supposed to be faster than former Big Red star Ron Spears.

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Football season starts

Thursday, August 28th, 2008

What an odd feeling.

I’ve just returned from a two-week vacation and high school football is ready to start tonight.

Normally, I send the two weeks leading up to the season preparing the annual Evening News football section.

I feel a little out of the loop this year, but it’s kind of fun, too. I will be finding out about the local teams as the season unfolds.

I’ll leave the expert’s role to my friend and boss, Ron Montri. Here is a link to his Week 1 predictions:

http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080828/SPORTS/108289954

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What can we expect?

Thursday, August 7th, 2008

The Detroit Lions open the exhibition season tonight and frankly I am baffled.

I have no idea what to expect.

Granted, exhibition games are meaningless and nearly unwatchable, but I am intrigued about the changes that will be made now that it appears that coach Rod Marinelli is firmly in control.

Will his running scheme work? Is the Tampa Two defense finally taking root?

The talent level does not appear to be great, but the Lions seem to have added some character to the roster. The question is whether that will make any difference.

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No loyalty

Saturday, August 2nd, 2008

Did you notice who picked up the save for Tampa Bay against the Detroit Tigers Friday night?

It was Troy Percival.

You might remember that Percival briefly played for the Tigers. The Tigers signed him as a free agent before the 2005 season and paid him $6 million.

What did they get for their investment? A total of 25 innings and 8 saves before he got hurt. The Tigers paid Percival another $6 million in 2006 even though he never threw a pitch.

You can’t fault a guy for getting hurt.

But what I do fault Percival for is a lack of loyalty. When he felt healthy enough to pitch again in 2007, he chose to return with the St. Louis Cardinals instead of the Tigers. He moved on to Tampa Bay this year and has 24 saves.

All of you Todd Jones bashers will enjoy the final irony of the story. It was largely because of Percival’s injury that the Tigers signed Jones to take over as closer before the 2006 season.

It is Percival who led to all of those roller coaster rides that Jones has given us over the past three seasons.

Posted in Baseball, Tigers | No Comments »