Sports and Leisure Magazine - November 2011 - Buffalo

SPORTS & LEISURE MAGAZINE November 2011

Heading into week nine,the Bills sit atop the AFC Eastwith a 5-2 record, thanks inlarge part to a long-awaitedwin over the Patriots in weekthree. The Bills are pacing theAFC with 211 points, despitehaving played one less gamethan many teams.

A big reason for the Bill’ssuccess this year has beenFred Jackson. With sixtouchdowns and 721 yards,Jackson has already exceededlast year’s TD total (five). Heis rushing for over 100 yardsper game and, what’s perhapsthe most impressive stat ofall, he is averaging almost 5.5yards per carry. Not bad for a30-year-old undrafted playerout of Division III CoeCollege. After RyanFitzpatrick’s six-year $59 mil-lion extension, the team hasmade no secret that wrappingup Jackson in the next prior-ity.

Speaking of undraftedplayers, Buffalo’s ownNaaman Roosevelt has beenquietly having a successfulsophomore season. Rooseveltcaught his first professional

touchdown pass in week sixagainst the Giants and hasimproved in almost every sta-tistical category from last sea-son. Working out with Fitzduring the lockout in Gilbert,Ariz. has already started topay dividends and when youspeak to his teammates, youget the sense that things areonly going to continue goingup for the young receiver.

With the Bills setting thetone for what should be animpressive season, the Sabreshave also responded with agood start. Although all theoffseason news was focusedon the big-name free agentsthe Sabres acquired, the crit-ics, as well as other teams,should have been concentrat-ing on the players the Sabresalready had in their system.Thomas Vanek and JasonPominville have both gottenoff to a hot start, ranking asthe third and sixth highestscorers in the league so far.Combined, their stats areeven more impressive: 13goals and 16 assists in 10games.

A large reason for their

success has been the man inthe middle: Luke Adam.Having been called up for 19games last season as aninjury replacement, it lookslike Luke won’t be travelingto Rochester anytime soon.Not only has the rookie cen-ter contributed three goalsand six assists to a first linethat is firing on all cylinders,but he is a large forwardamong a team of smaller thanaverage forwards and a bigcenter on a team that hasbeen weak down the middlesince the lockout.

What could be more excit-ing than the Bills and Sabresat the tops of their division?How about a Sports &Leisure Magazine exclusiveinterview with Bob Rich.Associate editor JeffreyLevine reviews Mr. Rich’snew book, “The Right Angle:Tales from a Sporting Life,”and discusses everythingfrom the Bisons, Bills andSabres to polo ponies, TeamHandball and fishing in themost beautiful places in theworld.

From the Publisher

Sports & Leisure Magazine469 Virginia Street, Buffalo, New York 14202Tel.: (716) 876-2738, Fax: (716) 874-8289

Email to: [email protected] us out on the web at www.sportsandleisuremag.com &

www.hugesportz.com

Publisher & Editor Marian GiallombardoAssociate Editor Jeffrey LevineFeature Writers Paul Adamo, Robert Caico, Rick Davenport, Mike Dyer, Mike Fox,Shirley Giallombardo, Ivan the Impaler, Ed Kilgore, Joe Kirchmyer, Shawn Krest (BuffaloManaging Editor), George Kuhn, Jeffrey Levine, Adam McGill, Brian Michalek, RonMontesano, Len Mytko, Gary Reeves, Charles Roberts, Dave Sully, John Williams, RickZurak (golf editor)Chief Photographer Jeff BarnesStaff Photographers Ryan Bartholomew, Bob Conlon, Nick LoVerde, Joe Valenti, MikeMajewski, Holly MalinowskiCover photos Fred Jackson by Joe Valenti, Luke Adam by Jeff BarnesAdvisory Board: Phil Haberstro, Adam Lingner, Denny LynchContributing Writers Bob Conlon,Craig Gusmann, Holly Malinowski, Amanda O’Leary,Bob Plezia, Dave Ricci, Kyle Soppe, Bob Timkey, Matthew YoungLayout & Cover Scott Appleby, Graphic artist Liz SeivertCopy Editors and Office Assistants Len Mytko, Justin Vernold, John WilliamsPlease send your letters, questions, and comments to: Sports & Leisure Magazine, 469Virginia Street, Buffalo, NY 14202 or e-mail [email protected]. Pleaseinclude your name, address and phone number or your letter can’t be published. All lettersand responses become the property of Sports & Leisure Magazine, they may be printed, andare subject to editing. Sports & Leisure Magazine is circulated throughout Western NewYork and Southern Ontario. All rights and trademarks reserved. Reproduction in whole or inpart without the express written consent of the publisher is strictly prohibited. ©1997 -2011 Sports & Leisure Inc.Facebook: Sports and Leisure Magazine and Hugesportz.com

November 2011 SPORTS & LEISURE MAGAZINE

By Charles Roberts

Turning 30 years old isgenerally the beginning ofthe end when it comes to thecareer of a National FootballLeague running back. Not sofor Fred Jackson of theBuffalo Bills.

Jackson, who turns 31 inFebruary, has emerged asone of the most productiverunning backs—if not play-ers—in the NFL. He runswith power and strength, butflashes agility and balance.He’s the best receiving threatthe team has had at the posi-tion since Hall of FamerThurman Thomas. As ifthat’s not enough, he is also aterrific blocker.

While most running backshope to rekindle their 20safter hitting the big 3-0,Jackson seems to be gettingbetter. Unlike most elite run-ning backs, however, hespent his 20s trying to makea name for himself in Iowa—playing college ball atDivision III Coe College andlater for the Sioux CityBandits of the former UnitedIndoor Football league.

His road from small-townIowa to the bright lights ofthe NFL didn’t come withoutprevious success. In college,Jackson was a two-time con-ference MVP and an All-American sprinter. In 2005,he was named co-MVP of theUIF after producing 1,770

yards and an astounding 41touchdowns.

“You’d like to get himinvolved a little bit more andlet him carry the ball,” Billshead coach Chan Gaileysaid. “We split him out andwe’re trying to get himinvolved in the pass game,too, because we’ve got somematchup issues for themdefensively when he’s splitout as well. We’d like to usehim a little bit more and cre-ate a little better balancethan we’ve had.”

Gailey isn’t the first coachlooking to get Jacksoninvolved in the passinggame, however. In fact,before his 2005 season inSioux City, Jackson reported-ly had an offer to switch towide receiver by joining thelarger Arena FootballLeague. He instead opted tostay in the smaller, lesser-known UIF, working tireless-ly at honing his runningback skills.

“I love to play football,period,” Jackson said. “But Ialways wanted to play run-ning back in the NFL andthat’s exactly what I’m doing.I’m representing Division III.I want all guys in D-III toknow they have a chance ifthey want to work for it.”

And work Jackson has.After going undrafted in2003, Jackson had just oneteam look at him—the GreenBay Packers. The Bills tabbed

Willis McGaheein the firstround that year.

Determinedto make an NFLroster, Jacksonspent 2006—m i d - M a r c huntil late-May—playingfor the RheinFire of the for-mer NFLEurope. But itwas anotherCoe Collegealumnus, inpart, whoafforded himthe opportunity.

“That is theNo. 1 reason I’min Buffalo, justbecause I knewcoach [Marv]Levy,” Jacksonsaid. “Himbeing an alumniof Coe College,I had the oppor-tunity to meethim when I wasa sophomore.When I wasdoing my work-outs and play-ing in thatindoor leaguefor two years, he said, ‘If Iever get a chance, I’ll get youa workout, whether it’s withme or another team in theleague.’”

Levy not only pulled a few

strings to get Jackson anopportunity with the RheinFire, he called him a fewmonths later to extend aninvitation to try out for theBills—just a week after being

named generalmanager in2006.

Jackson wasassigned to thepractice squadthat year, mak-ing the activeroster in 2007.Five years later,he continuesproving peoplew r o n g — o u t -working twofirst-round run-ning backs sincestrapping up thechinstrap for theBills—and iswidely consid-ered an earlyMVP candidate.

“Yeah, Freddybeen holding usdown, man,”Bills wide receiv-er StevieJohnson said.“Just the fire thathe has and youlook in his eyeswhen he’s in thehuddle. OK, thisdude’s ready towork let’s bringit with him; he’snot the only guyout here let’s

work with this dude… Thisis our brother, and he’s outthere holding it down for us,for real.”

Jackson, who said he wasjust 5-foot-8 and 145 pounds

when playing high schoolfootball in Arlington, Texas,continues growing in sizeand strength. Now standing6-foot-1, 215 pounds, hisnext growth-spurt is likely tobe financially.

The Bills recently gavequarterback Ryan Fitzpatricka six-year, $59 million deal.Jackson, who has a yearremaining on his currentcontract, and Johnson arereportedly next on the Bills’list of players to lock uplong-term.

“We’ll do the same withthem as we’ve done this time[with Fitzpatrick],” Billsgeneral manager Buddy Nixsaid. “When it’s done, we’lltalk about it.”

Not only is Jackson a fan-favorite—chants of “Freddie,Freddie, Freddie” soundthrough the air during game-days at Ralph WilsonStadium—he clearly has thefull support of his team-mates. Fullback CoreyMcIntyre regularly wears a T-shirt with Jackson’s nameand number on it, with thephrase “Reppin’ D3 Nation”on the back.

“I’m just continuously try-ing to work harder, get bet-ter, get stronger,” Jacksonsaid. “It’s an attitude that’sgot me where I am today andit’s something I plan to carrywith me the rest of mycareer.”

Determination leads the way for Bills’ Jackson

Photo by Joe ValentiLike a fine wine, Fred Jackson seems to get betterwith age.


By George Kuhn

Having earned a roster spot intraining camp, rookie LukeAdam started the season center-ing the top line with wingersThomas Vanek and JasonPominville. The results havebeen impressive. While Adamhas posted 3-6-9 in 10 games,his linemates are doing even bet-ter with Vanek ranking secondand Pomminville third overall inNHL scoring. While Adam hascertainly benefitted from play-ing with the veteran wingers,neither of them has ever rankedso high in overall scoring, so itwould seem that they are alsobenefitting from playing withtheir rookie center.

Last season Adam played 19games for the Sabres as an injuryreplacement, scoring three goalsand one assist for four points.He played primarily in theAmerican Hockey League, scor-ing 29 goals and 33 assists for 62points in only 57 games andtook home rookie of the yearhonors. Even so, a promotion tothe NHL was not a given. ManyAHL scoring stars never transi-tion successfully to the NHL.But Luke never doubted his abil-ity to make the jump.

“I don’t know if I would’vethought I would end up center-

ing the top line,” Adam said. “Itrained hard all summer long.My goal ever since the end oflast season has been to makethis team. I came into trainingcamp with the full expectationto make this team. That’s what Iset out to do. And now I’ve beengiven the opportunity to playwith Van and Poms and its beengoing pretty well. I don’t think Icould’ve drawn it up any betterthan that.”

The NHL is a step up from theAHL as Adam explains. “Thebiggest difference is quickness.Not so much skating quickness,obviously there is more of anup-tempo pace. Mentally it’s amuch quicker game up here, it’sthe time and space is taken awayso quickly here. When I havethe puck I have only a split sec-ond to make that play and if Idon’t make the play then thatopportunity is gone. Mentallyand physically it’s a lot quickergame and you’ve got to growaccustomed to it.”

At 6-foot-2, 203 pounds,Luke is a large forward among agroup of Sabres forwards manyof whom are undersized. Heaccumulated 257 penalty min-utes in 236 games as a junior, soclearly Luke is no shrinking vio-let and knows how to handle

himself physically. But with onlytwo penalty minutes this seasonin 10 games, he is obviouslyconcentrating on playing a well-rounded game and not overem-phasizing the physical play. “I’ma big forward and I try to use mysize and strength down low tocreate opportunities,” Lukeexplained. “I try to find emptyspots in the offensive zone touse my shot and get open so thatmy linemates can find me. Iwant to bring that physical gamealso but I’m not going to go run-ning around looking for that bighuge hit. I’m going to be hardnosed and win the battles in thedefensive end too. It’s so impor-tant in the NHL to play hard inyour own end.”

Luke potted his first fourNHL points last season during avariety of call ups and playingwith a variety of players over 19games. Could he have duplicat-ed this season’s success by play-ing on the top line last year? “Idon’t know about that, he said,“I feel I grew so much as a play-er last season in Portland andlearned a lot from coach Dineenand coach Weinrich. It’sbeen good so far but I canstill improve. You cannever be too good andthere’s still lots of areas

that I need to work on. I’m stillyoung and I’m trying to learnfrom my mistakes.”

Being a new player and afresh face, have the local fansrecognized him around town?“Not so much at the start but alittle bit more and more now,”Adam said. “That’s nice to getthe support from the fans whorecognize you in public.Obviously we have great fanshere.”

There is a tradition amongSabres fans who embraced DonLuce in the 1970s by chanting“Luuuuuce,” then Stu Barneswith “Stuuuuu” and now PaulGaustad with “Gooooooose.”Luke Adam would seem to bethe heir apparent and next inline. If he continues to put uppoints it would seem to beinevitable that the fans willembrace him with chants of“Luuuuuke.”

“I hope so,” Adam said,“that’s pretty neat when the fansmake that kind of gesture. Ihope I can pop a few goals athome and keep this going.”

Luke Adam makes his mark

Photo by Jeff BarnesAfter playing 19 games last season as an injuryreplacement, center Luke Adam has earned hisspot on the Sabres’ top line, and his linematescouldn’t be happier.

By Ed Kilgore

Right upfront, a Bills“home game”in Toronto, nomatter howmany years themarriage lasts,will never beeven close tothe atmosphereof a Bills truehome game at Ralph WilsonStadium in Orchard Park. Itisn’t Toronto’s fault though;the Bills are not “their” teamat all, no matter who pro-motes what in that regard.

Not only that, the ticketsare double or triple whatthey are in Orchard Park,which means many of the“fans” in the Rogers Centreare there because they weregiven “freebies” by one cor-poration or another.

To be fair though, the Billsdominating 23-0 win overthe disheartenedWashington Redskins at theRogers Centre was the firsttime football fans up theQEW have seen a decentproduct coming fromWestern New York. WhyWOULD fans up north cheerfor the Bills?

The atmosphere for thegame against the Skins, aswe’ve mentioned, was not atall like a game at the Ralph,but this time it wasn’t like apre-season or neutral sitegame either. In other words,while Bills fans used towatching their home gamesin Orchard Park may neverlike the arrangement, it issomething they will be ableto live with IF the Bills are adecent football team.

They are now a decentfootball team, and just howdecent we’ll find out in thenext several weeks, but nomatter how things turn out,

it’s pretty obvi-ous the Bills, as afranchise, haveturned the cor-ner.

First and fore-most, they nowhave their “fran-chise” quarter-back, and I don’thear anybody,either around

Buffalo or nationally, havinga negative reaction to RyanFitzpatrick’s $59 millionextension that will pay himan average of over $10 mil-lion per season. That beingsaid, the Bills owe it to them-selves and their future bycontinuing to look closely atthe draft for the future at thatall important position, andone look at the IndianapolisColts tells you a team shouldnever put all the eggs in thesame basket, no matter howsatisfied they are with theirNo.1 guy.

There’s a lot to like aboutFitz, who’ll turn 29 soon, butthe real thing that should bepointed out about Fitz, andthe reason GM Buddy Nixwas able to convince RalphWilson the bearded one isBuffalo’s franchise QB, is thatFitz has the mental and phys-ical toughness required toplay the game’s most impor-tant position. A leader’swords don’t mean much ifthe leader doesn’t “walk thewalk,” but Fitzparick mightbe not only the smartest guyon the team but the toughest.

In that Redskins game inToronto, Fitz took a hugeshot to the ribs from formerBills LB London Fletcher inthe second quarter, and did-n’t miss a snap. When Fitzshows he’s hurting, thatmeans something because hevirtually never shows it whenhe’s feeling pain, and there’s

not a QB alive that doesn’tfeel pain at some point dur-ing any game.

This isn’t to say Fitzpatrickis Jim Kelly, but then again,he doesn’t have to be to getthe Bills to the playoffs andbeyond. It’s much easier tobuild around a quarterbackonce you’ve made the com-mitment, and the Bills aredoing just that.

Doing the rebuilding thatGM Buddy Nix and coachChan Gailey are doing is theright way; through the draft,with a good eye for free agenttalent that can improve theoverall 53-man roster. Payinghuge amounts for big-namefree agents just hasn’t provento be that effective in theNFL, and the haplessRedskins are a great exampleof that.

We’ve mentioned thisbefore, but it’s worth men-tioning again; Gaily is thebest head coach the Billshave hired since the MarvLevy days, and Nix and hisscouting staff are a hugeupgrade over the previouscrews going back the pastdecade or so.

Which gets us back to theToronto thing, and why I feelthe relationship should con-tinue after the current dealexpires next year.

While playing a game inToronto may not be what theplayers or fans want in futureseasons, I remain firmly con-vinced that the arrangementis far more beneficial to theBills’ long range hopes ofkeeping their team inBuffalo, and if the Bills con-tinue to play good football,we’ll see the love fromToronto continue to grow,and the long term tradeoffwill be well worth it.

Don’t blame Toronto for Bills apathy


By Charles Roberts

There’s something aboutBuffalo Bills wide receiverNaaman Roosevelt—anindescribable charm—thathas a handful of his team-mates smiling. Maybe it’s theatypical progression to theNFL; not many play highschool, college and pro foot-ball in the same city. It couldbe that he has one of thosecontagious laughs.

Whatever the case, eventhe coaching staff can’t getenough of the guy. They’vereleased him twice in asmany years, but can’t seemto send him home for good.

“He’s a guy that first of all,he always makes you smile,”Bills quarterback RyanFitzpatrick said. “Just look-ing at the kid makes yousmile, I don’t know.”

The fact that Rooseveltruns disciplined routes andhas sure-thing hands wouldprobably make any quarter-back smile. It also couldn’thurt that he was among thegroup of players participat-ing in a quasi-minicamp atFitzpatrick’s house inGilbert, Ariz., during thelockout.

Fitzpatrick’s cheerfulexpressions dimmedmomentarily, however.

“He’s a guy I love throw-ing to,” Fitzpatrick said. “Inthe beginning of the yearwhen he wasn’t on thesquad… I was real heartbro-ken. But now he’s back,healthy and playing. Andhe’s done a great job andhe’ll continue to do a goodjob.”

When Bills No. 2 receiverDonald Jones went downwith an ankle injury Week 5against the PhiladelphiaEagles, Roosevelt was backon Western New York’sgrandest stage—thrust intothe most meaningful situa-tion of his two-year NFLcareer.

Five weeks prior, hisfuture seemed bleak.

“This game is a crazybusiness,” Roosevelt said.“So I was definitely preparedfor this moment.”

Prepared may have beenan understatement.Roosevelt reeled in fivereceptions— a personal bestas a pro—including a criti-cal 20-yarder in the latestages of the Bills’ 31-24 winover the favored-Eagles.

“Naaman just camethrough and did a couplegreat things for us,” Billshead coach Chan Gaileysaid. “That was big.”

Maybe, just maybe, thesmile Roosevelt elicits is amatter of him defying odds.Coming out of college, sev-eral scouts questioned hislack of speed. During aWeek 6 matchup with theNew York Giants, Rooseveltblazed a 60-yard trail to theend zone en route to his firstNFL touchdown.

“I think he has game-speed and I think he hasgood vision,” Fitzpatricksaid. “If you look at his pastfew catches, his run afterthe catch is really good.

Sometimes it’s not aboutbeing the fastest guy.Sometimes it’s about beingcrafty running with the ball.He’s got a knack for catchingit and getting north andsouth. The times he’s madecatches he’s done a good jobwith that and it was goodseeing him get into the endzone for the first time.”

“I’m definitely not a trackguy,” Roosevelt said. “Whenit’s game-speed I can defi-nitely do that.”

While the critics mighthave been silenced after hecrossed the goal line for thefirst time, one person who’sbeen a part of promotingRoosevelt over the years wasin a position to join in thecelebration. Jim McCoy, aphotographer for TheBuffalo News, was kneelingin the back of the end zoneand became the recipient ofa Roosevelt high-five.

“He worked at St. Joe’s, soI knew him for a little bit,”Roosevelt said chuckling.“So it was funny.”

Making headlines inBuffalo for a big play or twois hardly unfamiliar territo-ry; it’s practically been a wayof life for nearly a decade.From his high school days atSt. Joe’s to snagging 104receptions in 2008 at theUniversity at Buffalo,Roosevelt knows a thing ortwo about the region’s foot-ball landscape and viceversa.

As one of three undraftedreceivers added to the rosterlast year, Roosevelt totalednine receptions for 139yards, including a four-catch, 74-yard effort late inthe season against the NewEngland Patriots. The other

receivers added post-draftare Jones and David Nelson,who is familiar with theprocess of replacing astarter.

“That’s what I told him…I was like, ‘That’s how we dothings.’ Roscoe [Parrish]went down, I had to stepup,” Nelson said. “Donaldwent down, Naaman had tostep up.”

“Naaman steps up,” widereceiver Stevie Johnson, aseventh-round draft pick in2008, said. “Naaman camein and we didn’t miss a beat.He did his thing and it justshows the type of guys wehave on our team.”

Roosevelt is hardly ahousehold name. But he’s byno means alone in thatrespect. The Bills’ core isrounded out with playersjust like Roosevelt—over-looked and under-respected.

“The game’s not too bigfor him,” Fitzpatrick, a sev-enth-round pick of the St.Louis Rams in 2005, said.“He just goes out there andplays. He doesn’t know anybetter, just like the rest ofthem.”

For the 23-year-oldRoosevelt, it’s yet anotheropportunity to shine whiletraveling down a familiarroad. This time around,however, the only radar gunhe has to worry about is theone patrolling the highway;the scout clocking 40-yarddash times has other NFLhopefuls to target.

“That motivates me whenpeople say I’m not fastenough or big enough to dosomething, Rooseveltexplained. “It definitelymotivates me.”

Bills’ Roosevelt runs past the critics

Photo by Joe ValentiHometown pride: Naaman Roosevelt makes the most ofhis opportunity with the Bills.

By Leonard J. Mytko

Every fantasy ownerknows the importance ofhaving a good quarter-back. Quarterback is theglamour position, andthis season is no differentwith bothAaron Rodgersand DrewBrees leadingthe pack in apassing-friend-ly era. Fantasy-wise, identify-ing those quar-terbacks whohave the piecesin place for abig year goes along way inthe success ofone’s team. It’salso just asimperative tohave a strongbackup quar-terback in caseyour starterb e c o m e sinjured or hisstats turn sourfor a stretch.The potentialis everywhere.So let’s see ifany of thesenew signalcallers couldbe of somehelp for yourteam. Take alook: Christian Ponder,Vikings

With the Vikings fadingfast from playoff con-tention and the fact thatDonovan McNabb’s bestdays are clearly behindhim, Minnesota decidedto pull the plug onMcNabb and let theirfirst-round pick out ofFlorida State try and fixthis team’s passing prob-lems. And sure, it’sunlikely this move willtranslate to the 23-year-old becoming a viable fan-tasy option this early on,but we’ve seen rookiesCam Newton and AndyDalton unexpectedly turninto productive point pro-ducers in fantasy footballright away. John Beck, Redskins

He’s getting a chance tobe the Washington starter,replacing a benched RexGrossman in Week 6, butyou’ll likely find moreconsistent quarterbackswith better potential else-where. Also, MikeShanahan’s offenses stress

a strong running gamebefore the pass anyway sounless the matchup isright, the 30-year-oldBeck is, at best, a desper-ate bye-week fill-in. Shaun Hill, Lions

Starter MatthewStafford has played in just20 of 39 regular-seasongames in his two plusyears and considering he’snow walking wounded,the veteran Hill is a supersolid replacement for himand well worth a rosterspot. So stay readybecause his passing num-bers would probably bevery similar to Stafford’s ifhe happened to play regu-larly. And if you go andget Hill off the waiverwire now, you’re almostcertain to not have tofight off other owners forhim. Jake Locker, Titans

Opportunity keeps get-ting that much closer forTennessee’s quarterbackof the future with everyloss so it wouldn’t be at allsurprising if Locker isstarting sometime soon.And, of course, it’s unlike-ly he would get the Titansinto the playoffs or eventake your fantasy teamthere just yet, but he’s cer-tainly a top talent towatch in all dynasty

leagues. Carson Palmer, Raiders

Don’t tell your fellowowners, but Palmer couldbe on the verge of becom-ing a pretty good fantasyquarterback again. He’s

armed andready toprove allt h ed o u b t e r swrong andhas ane x c i t i n ggroup ofy o u n gg a m e -b r e a k i n greceivers towork withand pushthe balldown thefield. Addin a big-play rush-ing attackled byD a r r e nMcFaddenand Palmercould beyour team’ss a v i o rdown thestretch. Tim Tebow,Broncos

H i ss p a r k l i n gplay at the

end of last season gavesome indication that morefantasy success could bejust around the corner.And even if trying to putup big passing numberswith a surrounding castthat’s lacking now, to saythe least, will be quitechallenging for him, he’sstill worth adding basedupon his abilities in thered zone. Another late-season resurgence is a realpossibility here. Vince Young, Eagles

Michael Vick hasplayed 16 regular-seasongames only once in hiseight-year career. He’salready getting banged upbehind a suspect offensiveline and it’s only a ques-tion of when Young isgoing to have to step inand maybe start a fewgames. Plus with goodstarting fantasy quarter-backs so hard to come byand all that talent onoffense around him,Young is still worth abench spot should thattime come.

Fantasy football: Get ‘em while you can

Photo by Mike MajewskiNew Raiders QB Carson Palmer could help lead yourfantasy team to a late push this year.

naaman rooseveltSIGNING IN-STORE! 12/3, 3-5pm


By Mike Fox

Which hot-starting play-ers should fantasy ownerschase right now, and whichones should be avoided?

Yeah, good question.While most of us are able torealize that, for example,the Bulin Wall sighting onthe plains of Canada willprobably prove to be amirage, other options maynot be so obvious. Let’stouch on some of the play-ers that are tempting own-ers across the fantasyworld.

L.A.’s Jon Quick is at itagain. He came out of thegates sizzling last year enroute to his second consecu-tive 30-plus win season, andthis year’s start is borderlineridiculous. Quick has beenalmost untouchable in theearly going, carrying a 1.52GAA and .947 save percent-age after three consecutiveshutouts. While obviouslyhis year-end stats won’t con-tinue to look like a studreliever’s ERA and WHIP,Quick could be on his way toanother big year inTinseltown. He’s entering hisprime at age 25, and the

Kings added firepower andveteran leadership in the off-season after trading for for-mer Flyer captain MikeRichards, and signing wingerSimon Gagne as a free agent.Jonathan Bernier will againsteal starts, but Quick willprove to be a top-10 fantasygoalie, maybe even top-five.

Tread a bit more lightlywith the likes of Colorado’sSemyon Varlamov andDallas’s Kari Lehtonen. TheAvalanche acquiredVarlamov and his career 30-13-12 record in a trade with

the Caps, and early indica-tions are they plan to ridehim hard and often. Thatwould be a better plan wereit not for Varlamov’s inabilityto avoid lower-bodyinjuries—it took him twofull seasons to accrue those30 wins. His supporting castin the Rockies is nowherenear as strong as the team heleft in D.C., so even if hestays healthy, a big “if”indeed, Varlamov should beconsidered nothing morethan a No. 2 fantasy goalie.

Lehtonen made 69 appear-ances with the Stars last year,registering 34 wins for thesecond time in his career.That would carry moreweight if it wasn’t for the factthat the other 34-win seasonwas way back in his sopho-more 2006-07 season, asinjuries limited him to anaverage of 35 starts in thethree years sandwiched in-between. Let’s do the math:two healthy seasons, fourinjury-marred seasons.Proceed at your own risk.

At first glance, James Neallooks conspicuously out ofplace sitting near the top theNHL leader board in goals,

but this could be the begin-ning of a breakout year forthe 24-year-old winger. Hescored at least 20 goals ineach of his first three seasonswith the Dallas Stars beforemoving to Pittsburgh lastFebruary in the AlexGoligoski trade. No, hewon’t score 60, but Neal alsoleads the league in shots, andis averaging almost 19 min-utes of ice time per gamewith the Pens, so even aslight regression should stillresult in the first 30-goal sea-son of his career.

At the other end of thespectrum is fellow PenguinMatt Cooke, who has com-

piled a 4-4-8 line over hisfirst 12 games. If you areexpecting a 50-point seasonto follow, you are destinedfor disappointment, asCooke’s job description runsmore along the lines ofEnforcer than Scorer. If yourleague counts penalty min-utes and/or hits, then Cookewill remain a viable startingfantasy option. If not, tradehim now.

Nothing grabs the atten-tion of fantasy owners morethan a fast-starting rookie,especially if that rookie hap-pens to be the No. 1 overallpick from the most recententry draft. Telephone and

computer lines across thefantasy world are likelybuzzing as owners race toacquire Edmonton’s RyanNugent-Hopkins, after ittook him only three games toregister his first NHL hattrick. If you’re one of thosechasing him, remember thathe’s only 18 years old, andthe NHL game is about morethan just scoring. It’s entirelypossible the Oilers could stillsend him back to the minorsfor seasoning this year, so ifyou play in fresh-startleagues, pay accordingly in atrade. If you are in a keeperleague, then chase away!

Fantasy hockey

Photo courtesy NHL MediaJames Neal is looking likethe real deal in the SteelCity.

By Shawn Krest

Brett Favre is retired, pos-sibly forever this time.Peyton Manning is injuredand appears to be out forthe season.

Who will be able to stepup and fill the voidleft by those twolegendary quarter-backs? Maybe aguy who’s beenthere all along.

Maybe a guylike Drew Brees.

But probablynot.

Drew Brees isthe surprisinganswer to a lot oftrivia questions.Highest postsea-son completionpercentage in his-tory? That’s Brees.Highest in any oneseason? AlsoBrees. Lowestcareer interceptionpercentage? Onlyq u a r t e r b a c kbesides DanMarino with a5,000 yard season,or three straight4,000 yard, 30touchdown sea-sons? All Brees.

He’s beatenManning in aSuper Bowl and isriding an NFLrecord string of 28completion games,and his 35 gameswith a touchdownpass is third best inhistory. And he’sdone it by throw-ing to guys namedMarques Colston, DeveryHenderson, and now JimmyGraham. They’re all goodplayers, but it’s doubtfulthat Dancing with the Starshas them on speed dial.

All Brees does is produce,and he’s done it as good aseveryone, and better thanjust about all of them. Yetno one seems to notice.

He was ushered out thedoor in San Diego in favorof younger, healthier PhilipRivers. In the six seasonssince then, Brees hasthrown for more yards fivetimes, and had at least 1,000more than Rivers in three ofthe six years. He’s alsothrown for more touch-

downs than Rivers in five ofthe six years, and the oneyear he didn’t, they tied.

“Drew Brees is an excel-lent quarterback year in andyear out,” Cam Newton, theCarolina Panthers top draft

pick who is having a record-setting rookie season of hisown said.

Newton is setting theleague on fire, averaging299 yards a game passing,with 11 touchdowns in hiseight starts, and six passesof 40 yards or more. Hedeserves all the attentionhe’s getting, but Brees, who’saveraging 343 yards a game,with 19 touchdowns, andsix 40-yard bombs, proba-bly deserves some ink aswell.

“What makes him good isthat he can identify cover-ages early, and he has anidea of what is going to beopen before he even snaps

the ball,” Newton’s team-mate, Panthers linebackerJames Anderson, said. “Sohe puts himself in thatadvantage by knowingwhere he is going.”

Brees led the Saints to acome-from-behindwin against thePanthers, his 18thf o u r t h - q u a r t e rcomeback and27th game-win-ning drive. That’ssecond-best amongactive quarter-backs, behind TomBrady and PeytonManning.

“There’s neverworry, never pan-icking,” Saintsrookie runningback Mark Ingramsaid. “He alwayswaits for hisopportunity to dohis job. In a situa-tion like that wealways have theutmost confidencein Drew. He is agreat guy, a greatplayer, and there isno better person tobe on the field withthan him whenyou have to comefrom behind.”

Brees’ busi-nesslike approachtoward a fourth-quarter deficitwould also applyto the attentiondeficit he’s battledhis whole career.

“Calm, cool, col-lected,” Brees said.“We’ve been here

many times before. Let’s justgo be us. Let’s do what wedo. Nothing spectacular,just methodical.”

Cam Newton is the hotrookie. Tim Tebow the hotdebate. Eli is the newManning of choice for TVcommercials. AaronRodgers is the Super Bowl-winning quarterback com-ing into his own.

They’ll all fill the void leftby Favre and PeytonManning, at least on studiopregame shows. Drew Breeswill just keep passing andkeep winning.

There’s never been a voidwith Drew Brees around.

No Manning, no Favre, still no attention for Drew Brees

Photo by Joe ValentiDrew Brees has a chance to shine withPeyton Manning out of the limelight.

By Gary Reeves

In the past I wrote a col-umn aboutproblem par-ents. The col-umn in ques-tion made refer-ences aboutparents verballyand, in somecases, physical-ly attackingother parents,referees andeven coaches.Since it’s thebeginning ofthe hockey season I wouldlike to submit this columnfor the benefit of all MinorHockey Parents. In this col-umn I would like to offersome helpful hints to par-ents who, in some cases,may be creating a harmfulbarrier to the sport theirchild enjoys without realiz-ing it.

We all love our kids andwill support them in anyway we can. However, per-sonal involvement some-times crosses that fine lineand enters into what couldbe considered the dangerzone. One suggestion I haveis to allow your child to playtheir sport “in their eyes”and not yours.

Kids are not infallible.They’re going to make mis-takes during a game, sowhat! Some parents becomeso upset because their childdoesn’t play up to “theirexpectations.” The poor kidgets nothing but instantreplays all the way home inthe car. You can’t fool kids.They can sense your pentup frustrations just by thesound of your voice. Sowhat have you achieved?

Your kid “clams up,”becomes silent and the frus-

tration grows.Instead oftelling the kidhow badly he orshe played themoment theyleave the dress-ing room, tryasking them,“Well, how didyou do, did youhave fun?”.

Let them tellyou how thegame personally

went for them. They knowwhether they played a goodgame or a bad game. Thenlet it go. Somewhere downthe line after the heat of thegame, ask your son ordaughter what they thinkwent wrong and togethercome up with suggestionsas a remedy. In all probabil-ity don’t be too surprised ifthey don’t approach youfirst. Give them positiveencouragement on some ofthe good things they didduring the game. In thisway little or no intimidationis involved and the gamestill remains fun.

One other suggestion isdon’t try and embarrassyour child during the game.In hockey arenas I’ve oftenwatched overzealous par-ents loudly shouting theirkid’s name, trying to directtheir every move on the ice.

This is not only embar-rassing to any young hock-ey player, it is also a deter-rent for the young players tothink for themselves andplay the game their waywithout intimidation. Don’tshout at the referee if yourson or daughter is given a

penalty. They know yourvoice. How embarrassing itmust be for young hockeyplayers trying to create theirown identity out on the ice.

The downside of all thisparental pressure could endup in a 10 or 12-year-olddropout because the funwent out of their sport. I’vebeen training hockey play-ers for 35 years and cansight numerous testimonialswhere this has happened.

Don’t misconstrue thisarticle to suggest that theseparents are not good parentsbecause that simply is notso. If they weren’t good par-ents they wouldn’t be sacri-ficing their lives by takingtime off work, cancellingmeetings, etc. not to men-tion the monetary costinvolved supporting theirchildren. These parentsshuffle their kids into“their” schedules in a bondof family togetherness inthese very special years oftheir lives. These are verycaring parents.

Keep in mind that inmost cases the coach willspot the problem area yourson or daughter is havingand will endeavor to correctthe situation. Let the coachdo their job; don’t muddythe waters. Above all, don’ttake fun away from a kid!

I hope this column willbe constructive as a tool to abetter understanding ofparental etiquette and thebenefits it will reap.

For more informationregarding our Pro SkatingHockey Skills Clinics orIndividual and Team Clinics,call Gary Reeves at905.384.0508.

Child’s play should stay child’s play


By Jeffrey LevineLike many boys growing

up in the 1940s, Bob Richcan trace his love of sportsdirectly back to one source;opening day with his dad.The only difference is thatunlike his peers, not everychild is presented with theopportunity to buy thehometown team, makemoves to allow that team toflourish, and help to usher ina new era of excitement andprosperity.

In his most recent book,“The Right Angle: Tales froma Sporting Life,” Bob shareshis story of the Bisons inthree short stories, vignettesreally, that outline his pur-chase of the team in 1983and the shooting of TheNatural to the move fromDouble-A to Triple-A and theinitial disappointment of notbeing selected as a MajorLeague Baseball expansionteam after close to a decadeof planning. Despite theseinsightful glimpses intoBuffalo sport’s history and col-orful stories on some of theteam’s most colorful charac-ters, what resonates the mostare the impressions of openingday: the anxious anticipationof getting out of school early;the excitement of sitting in thefront seat; the knowledge thathis dad has taken time out ofhis busy schedule to be withhim and only him; the unspo-ken understanding of theirfriendship.

Even at 70, you can senseBob’s undiminished youthfulexuberance, the desire forcompetition, the need to bechallenged. He’s not Robert E.Rich, Jr., Chairman of RichProducts Corporation, one ofAmerica’s most successfulcompanies. He’s Bob, the guysitting next to you at a gamewho strikes up a conversationand puts you instantly at ease.It’s what makes the stories of“The Right Angle” so com-pelling. As you read you feellike you’re listening to one ofyour oldest friends tell you astory over a beer and a plate of

chicken wings. At the sametime, and without missing abeat, Bob can also describe theminutia of politics involved inobtaining the naming rightsfor Rich Stadium—the firstdeal of its kind—as only abusinessman can while sum-ming up the entire turbulentprocess with one vivid image;a handshake between his dadand Ralph Wilson, Jr.

It is a rare person who canmove between both of thesemodes, but it’s something thatBob Rich has been doing it allhis life. To him, sports are afoil for business and vice-versa. “One of the areas whereteam sports are important iswhen you’re building a busi-ness,” Rich explained. “Youcoalesce around a commoncause.”

Admitting that he couldnever hit a curveball growingup, football and hockey wereBob’s team sports of choice inhigh school. It should come asno surprise that while attend-ing Nichols, Bob took on themost important leadership

roles in bothsports, suitingup at quarter-back on the fieldand standing in-between thepipes on the ice.Although Bobg r a d u a l l yphased out foot-ball, he contin-ued to playgoalie, first atW i l l i a m sCollege andlater as anOlympic hope-ful, only to bethe last one cutfrom the teambefore the 1964games inI n n s b r u c k ,Austria. Thespirit of compe-tition wouldalso lead him tocapture six Citysquash champi-onships, single-handedly organ-

ize Western New York’s firstTeam Handball squad at theEmpire Games, build a stableof polo ponies to play withsome of the game’s greatestplayers and rekindle a long-dormant love; fishing.

“Some of my most cher-ished moments were withmy dad. I had a14-foot boatwith a five-horsepowerengine when I was 11 yearsold. It was my pride and joy.We would catch bass, perch.Days I’ll never forget,” Richrecalled. “Now I’ve had thechance to take all eight of mygrandkids out. I’ve been withall of them when they caughttheir first fish. A little bit ofimmortality; everyoneremembers who they caughttheir first fish with.”

Having fished in some ofthe most beautiful places inthe world—Islamorada andthe Florida Keys; the historicriver test in England; SãoVicente, Cape Verde—forsome of the largest fish in theworld, Bob is no longer insearch of the next big catch

or finding trophies. Whatdrives him is somethingmuch bigger; hope. It is thepromise and potential ofmeeting a new person, expe-riencing something for thefirst time, of finding some-thing that you never knewwas there.

In an attempt to sum upBuffalonians to out-of-town-ers, Bob begins the introduc-tion to “The Right Angle”with seven and a half virtues,the first of which isIndomitable Spirit. If youever needed the definition ofIndomitable Spirit, look nofarther than the Buffalo Billswhose four consecutiveSuper Bowl appearances will“never be repeated,” accord-ing to Bob. At the same time,the four consecutive loses,while heartbreaking, have notdiminished our will to fight,only heightening the desire tofinally claim that elusivechampionship.

“I thought long and hardabout ordering [the sevenand a half virtues ofBuffalonians],” Richexplained. “When you gothrough some of the thingsthat we go through, you needto have Indomitable Spirit—in others words, The Blizzardof ‘77. Now we make jokes

about it, but it was a killerstorm. For all of us who werethere we went throughtremendous hardship. That’sone of the guiding things thathold us all together. If youcan’t handle the weather orthe other issues, up and leave,don’t stay around…. But thepeople who do stay, youcouldn’t shoot them out witha cannon.”

With business and leisureactivities taking him acrossthe globe, Bob has remainedclose to Buffalo. One of hislatest ventures began withtracing his European rootsand ended by sponsoring theBedlington Terriers, anEnglish Football Club. InJune, Bob brought the entireteam across the pond to playa friendly against FC Buffalo,spending a week statesideand conducting youth clinicsfor area players. Not to beoutdone, his son Bobby (whohad his 15 minutes of fame asRobert Redford’s son in TheNatural), recently sponsoredthe Brisbane Roar, who wentundefeated in the AustralianPremier League. “My sonone-upped me on this one.He made a better deal than Idid,” Rich stated, both as aproud father and staunchcompetitor.

While Bob can joke abouthis son’s similar sports fran-chise proclivities—GoodHumor, item four on theseven and a half virtues ofBuffalonians—it is numbersix, Caring for the LessFortunate, which his bookput into practice, with all pro-ceeds benefitting the Boys &Girls Club. “My first sportsmemory was my father takingme to a football game at theButler Mitchell Boys [&Girls] Club,” Rich explained.“When we launched [“TheRight Angle”] at the Boys &Girls Club it was very emo-tional for me to rememberhow much my father caredabout the organization. Hewas a longtime member ontheir board of directors and Ibecame a director under him.My third son, Teddy, becamea director as well.”

From being a part of theSabres initial ownershipgroup and revitalizing Bison’sbaseball to pioneering thesports landscape and alwayslooking for his next chal-lenge, Bob Rich’s legacy willextend far beyond Buffalo foryears to come. He is a con-summate businessman, a lov-ing family man and, at heart,a true sportsman.

Bob Rich: Beyond the Bisons

Photo courtesy Bob Rich Jr,/Prometheus BooksVery few people have done more to shapethe last four decades of Western New Yorksports than Bob Rich.

Former Buffalo Bills full-back Cookie Gilchristwill be inducted intothe Greater Buffalo

Sports Hall of Fame onNovember 9. Joining him in thisyear’s class is former All-ProBuffalo Bills defensive linemanRuben Brown; two time SuperBowl champion Jim Burt(Giants/49ers); Olympic goldmedalist Steve Mesler; formerBuffalo Sabres broadcaster andplayer, Jim Lorentz; local base-ball legend Don Colpoys; highschool and collegiate basketballstar Curtis Aiken (BennettHS/Pitt); major league baseballplayer Phil Mankowski(Tigers/Mets); professionalgolfer and award-winninginstructor Cindy Miller; theinventor of the sport of volley-ball William Morgan; one of thefounding fathers of the WestSide Rowing Club, MichaelBroderick; and legendary dis-tance runner Lewis “Deerfoot”Bennett. Photo courtesy Buffalo Bills


CommunitySports Report

Come awayfrom that fast-paced, hurry-scurry life andrelax in theE n c h a n t e dMountains ofC a t t a r a u g u sCounty. Hereyou can partici-pate in a pletho-ra of winteractivities—ornot! Whateverit is you do forrelaxation, you can do it herein a serene, peaceful location.Enjoy your leisure by spend-ing an extended amount oftime here; there is a wideassortment of fine accommo-dations that will meet everyneed.

Come to Ellicottville,where the winter fun begins.Enjoy the slopes at HolidayValley Resort and HoliMont,they are sure to please all lev-els of skiers. Or try tubing atHoliday Valley Tubing Co.There’s also the new moun-tain coaster to try, which isopen all winter long atHoliday Valley inEllicottville.

Snowmobile on over 400miles of trails for you toenjoy. Snowmobile maps canbe obtained by calling 800-331-0543.

Unwind in the tranquil

setting of Allegany StatePark. There are plenty oftrails for cross-country skiingat the Park. Or take yourfamily for a stay in one of thewinterized cabins so you canenjoy the outdoors duringthe winter season.

For a nice getaway anytime of the year, visitSprague’s Maple Farms for anexperience you will longremember. Watch as maplesyrup is produced as youmake your way into the wel-coming restaurant. Then beprepared for surprises as youawait your mouth wateringmeal; look for a raccoon topop its head up out of abucket, or an owl to hootfrom its perch and a wood-pecker tapping on the wall,there is even a family of bearsto see. No matter the time ofyear, an adventure awaits

you! Hike thetrails behindthe restaurantand see howthe trees aretapped orwatch sapbeing boiled inthe old fash-ioned sugarshanty.

Rememberto stop in tosee the OldMasters ondisplay in oneof the galleries

at the Regina A. QuickCenter for the Arts, locatedon the campus of St.Bonaventure University, thecenter is free and open to thepublic.

Don’t forget to take achance at the new SenecaAllegany Casino located inSalamanca for an excitingtime! Visit the SenecaIroquois National Museumfor a history of the SenecaNation of Indians here inWestern New York.

For a complete listing of fes-tivals and events, visitwww.EnchantedMountains.info or call for a FREE travelguide at 800-331-0543.

No matter what youchoose for your relaxation,come to the EnchantedMountains of CattaraugusCounty to reconnect!

Enchanted Mountains of Cattaraugus County in Western New YorkBy Bob Timkey

Snowshoeing is a simple,safe and fun way to enjoythe outdoors during ourlong Western New Yorkwinter months. The activitycan be as leisurely as takinga stroll in a park or as vig-orous as running amarathon, literally.

The right apparel isessential to enjoying yourtime on snowshoes. You’llwant to lean toward syn-thetic mate-rials such asnylon thatrepel waterand allowperspirationto evaporatequickly. Alight pair ofnylon run-ning pantsand wind-breaker is as u i t a b l eouter layer.Underneath,wear one ortwo layersd e p e n d i n gon theweather andhow vigorously you plan toexercise. Avoid the tenden-cy to overdress as you willwarm up once you get mov-ing. If you don’t warm up inthe first 10 minutes, youcan easily turn back to addan additional layer of insu-lation.

Other than your exerciseattire, you’ll only need apair of snowshoes and com-fortable footwear. Footwearchoices can vary greatlydepending on personal pref-erence and your goal. Thesechoices may include hikingboots, cross-country skiboots, trail running shoes oreven ordinary runningshoes. Besides comfort, twoimportant things to consid-er when choosing footwearare water resistance andweight. If you’ll likely bewalking through deep snow,a boot will be a betterchoice to keep your feet andankles dry, warm and com-fortable. On packed snowtrails, such as you’re likelyto find in a snowshoe race,running shoes or trail shoeswill work fine and give youan advantage over boots for

running. Avoid steel toed orheavy-duty work boots.Since you’ll be adding theweight of snowshoes aswell, you’ll want to avoidweighing your feet downtoo much.

Snowshoes come in avariety of styles and sizes.Most modern snowshoesare constructed of light-weight aluminum framesand utilize intricate strapsystems that allow the shoesto be quickly and easilystrapped on and tightenedover your shoes, even withgloved hands. Entry level orbargain basement snow-shoes may include cheapplastic ratchet-type straps.These are fine for kids toplay on but you get whatyou pay for. A step up to amid-level set of shoes willprovide you a much morereliable strap system thatgoes on and off more easilyand stays on. The size of theshoe is the next mostimportant thing to consider.Larger snowshoes, in the 23inch to 30 inch range, willallow you to more easilypass over deep, powdery

snow withoutsinking toodeeply intothe powder.The downsideof large shoesis that they’recumbersomeand heavy,which willlead to fatiguesooner. Ifyou’re afterspeed andagility, opt for

a smallersnowshoe likethe ones worn

by snowshoe marathoners. One of the beauties of

snowshoeing is that you cando it virtually anywherethere’s open space and snow.Use common sense to avoidtrespassing on private prop-erty or venturing into ter-rain that is too demandingor dangerous. Public parksare a fine place to start.Look for a fairly flat, safearea to practice. Once you’reconfident, you can seekmore hilly terrain andexplore further. Cramponsfitted to the bottom of yoursnowshoes will provide ade-quate traction to walk uprather steep, icy terrain withconfidence once you’recomfortable moving aboutin your equipment. Thisfeature changes a slippery,ice-covered walking trailinto a winter playground.

Getting started is as sim-ple as putting one foot infront of the other. Simplygear up and head out. Bringalong a thermos of hotcocoa and find a quiet placeto enjoy another of WesternNew York’s simple pleas-ures.

Snowshoeing for fun and fitness

Snowshoeing is a fun way to get some exercise duringthe long Western New York winter.

Photo courtesy Cattaraugus CountyCattaraugus County offers lots of ways to enjoy winter.


By Joe Kirchmyer

At the age of 86, don’texpect to see Hall of Famecoach Marv Levy patrollingthe sidelines again during anNFL game. Then again, JoePaterno is still coaching thePenn State Nittany Lions atthe age of 84. But that does-n’t mean football is com-pletely out of Levy’s blood.Not by a long shot.

In fact, Levy recentlyspent some time in WesternNew York—he now lives inChicago— promoting hislatest book, Between the Lies.The novel follows two fic-tional teams, the Los AngelesLeopards and the PortlandPioneers, who are destinedto meet in the Super Bowlwhen the integrity of the

game suddenly comes intoquestion. While Levy him-self coached the Buffalo Billsto four Super Bowl appear-ances, he insists that thecheating scandal detailed inthe book is all fiction.

“When people read it,they see that the focus is noton cheating,” Levy said.“The focus is really onalways playing hard andplaying to win. But I do haveto keep saying this over andover... it’s fiction!”

As a coach, Levyexplained that he wouldoften jot down plot lines andscenarios following practicesand games, “enough for 50books,” he said. In fact, hehas an idea in mind foranother book; ironically, it

has nothing to do with thegame of football. Next in linemight be a mystery involvingdouble jeopardy, hinted theCoe College graduate, whoadmits to being “enamoredby good writers” since hiscollegiate days as an Englishand history major.

And back in Western NewYork, Bills fans are clearlyenamored with their team’sformer coach and generalmanager.

“It’s always heartwarmingto go back to Buffalo,” Levysaid of his somewhat fre-quent visits to Western NewYork for book-signingevents, alumni gatheringsand other occasions. “Wetreasured our years thereand you can see why a lot of

players—(Jim) Kelly, (Steve)Tasker, Thurman(Thomas)—all decided tomake Buffalo their home.”

Levy’s recent visit—whichcentered around some book-related activities as well asPhil Hansen earning hisplace on the Buffalo BillsWall of Fame during thehome opener against theOakland Raiders—reunitedthe former coach with manyof his players from thosefour Super Bowl teams. “Istill see those guys fairlyoften and we stay in touch,”Levy said. “It’s always goodto see them and we neverbelabor this game or thatgame.”

“In fact, today’s conversa-tions usually revolve aroundmore typical things such asfamily matters,” he added.

As for the current BuffaloBills team, Levy praisedcoach Chan Gailey andcredited him and his coach-ing staff for Buffalo’s out-standing start to the season.“Chan Gailey’s reputationaround the league as a coachis very good, and he’s puttogether a very good staff.But I’m going to do a littlebragging here. When I wasGM back in 2006-2007, weput heavy focus on RyanFitzpatrick and FredJackson. There’s also a lot ofgood character guys on theteam—George Wilson andguys like that.”

For background,Fitzpatrick was a late rounddraft pick of the St. LouisRams in 2005 and also spent

time with theC i n c i n n a t iBengals beforeeventually land-ing with theBills. Jackson, aCoe Collegegraduate likeLevy, played

indoor football and in NFLEurope before Levy broughthim to Buffalo in 2006.

And, no conversationwith Levy would be com-plete without asking hisopinion on the future of theBills in Buffalo.

“When I was with theteam, I hardly ever delvedinto the business aspect ofthe team,” he said. “I wasworried about how to beatzone blitzes and that stuff.But my guess is that theteam is going to stay there.Even with playing in

Toronto ...that’s justone game ayear and Ithink that’smore of ana p p r e c i a -tion for thepeople whodo comedown (fromOntario) toBuffalo for

games. I do foresee themstaying (in Buffalo).”

Levy plans to visitWestern New York again inearly November, whenBuffalo will be taking on thedivision rival New York Jets.His busy schedule will sure-ly include additional book-signing events and alumnigatherings.

“I’ve slowed down a bit,but not a lot,” Levy noted,addressing his hectic-as-everschedule. “I exercise, walk alot and break into the occa-sional trot. I also lift weightsthree days a week and I liketo read about what makes agood diet,” he said with alaugh. “Overall, I do follow ahealthy lifestyle.”

It’s a lifestyle that hasbrought him great successamong both athletes andauthors, and has made him aliving legend amongWestern New York’s footballfaithful.

Joe Kirchmyer is presidentof West Seneca-basedKirchmyer Media. To com-ment on this story, send anemail to [email protected].

Even at 86, Marv Levy has not written offhis fondness for football or Buffalo

By ChristopherKoenig, PT, DPT,MBA

If you want toreaffirm your faithin all things phe-nomenal, just try tounderstand thehuman body. It is avast, complex,interconnected sys-tem that carries you24 hours a daywithout you think-ing about it. All youhave to do is feed it! Take asimple task like walkingthrough a hall and lookingat a picture on a wall whileyou are passing it. Sensorynerves in your feet feel theground, and tell your brainwhat is underneath you.Receptors in your musclestell your brain where oneleg is, and when to advancethe other. Your cerebellumis functioning to make surethat your core muscles arekeeping you upright, yourarms are moving in a recip-rocal pattern to help assistwith shifting your weightfrom one side to the otherso you can step with onefoot, and lift off the other.Not complicated enoughyet? Now as you are lookingat the picture on the wall,your eyes are fixed on itwhile your head is movingwhile you get nearer to thepicture. Vestibular organs inyour ear are assisting youreyes to stay fixed, whilerotating your head, all thewhile keeping you fromfalling by constantly evalu-ating three different planesof motion.

Various ailments canaffect any one of theseprocesses, interrupting yourbalance and in turn the abil-ity of your body to automat-ically correct for distur-bances. Diabetes candecrease sensory input inyour feet, making it moredifficult to monitor what’sbelow you. To accommo-date for this, many peoplefinding themselves walkingwith their head down, usingtheir eyes as extra sensoryinput to see what is below

them. As a result, thesefolks may not be using theireyes to scan to see what isaround them, and are at agreater risk to fall. If thevestibular organs areinvolved, such as withBPPV, you would have ahard time knowing whereyour body is in space. Iequate the vestibular organsto three different water lev-els, with a bubble movingback and forth, all coordi-nating with one another. Ifone is off, it affects the rest,as well as automatic reflexesbetween your vestibularorgans and your eyes.

Even without any pre-existing issues, there areways to train your body, andmake your balance moreacute, which will aid you inany sport. I described thecomplex system of balanceabove, but when you aretranslating it into sportrather than just walking,you bring in a variety ofother systems as well.Strength, flexibility, coordi-nation, and balance all worktogether to make your bodyreact the way you need it to.This opens up a world ofgreat training techniquesthat are both fun, andintense.

The best ways to train inthe shortest amount of timeif your goal is general fit-ness is to incorporate allthese components at once.It will tax your nervous sys-tem, as well as you strengthand flexibility, which willhave great carry over toyour sport. IncorporatingBosu’s, balance boards, ther-aballs, and uneven surfaces

to your regularexercise and train-ing regimen willput you on theright track. Forthis, I like to add aBosu ball, which isessentially half atheraball with a flatside to standardexercises. Thisadds instability ofyour surface, caus-ing your body tocompensate and

assist all of the processesinvolved in coordinationand balance. A standardexercise, such as a standingcable row can be made morecomplex by standing on aBosu. To do this, place theBosu a few feet back from anadjustable cable, setting itto about chest height. Graspthe bar attached, and standonto the Bosu with the flatside down. You’ll have tobend your knees a bit tokeep from being pulled for-ward off the Bosu by theweight. You’ll find it is diffi-cult enough standing on theball with the weight pullingyou forward. When you feelstable enough, begin to pullthe bar in low on your chestslowly, and then fullyextend your arms andrepeat. This is a great way toadd static balance and coor-dination techniques intoyour workout, and you’llalso notice that it is verytaxing on your core musclesas well.

The McGuire Group ishaving a Balance and FallPrevention seminar inNovember at our Harris Hilllocation, free to the public.We will be discussing whatis involved with balance,and how you can decreaserisks of falling and modify-ing your home if necessary.For more information onthis, you can email KatieLeblanc, PT, DPT at [email protected].

Christopher Koenig is aDoctor of Physical Therapy,and the Administrator ofRehabilitation for TheMcGuire Group.

Train for balance, train for everything

The bosu ball can be used in many ways,especially for balance exercises.

Unlike most Hall of Famecoaches, Marv Levy also haspublished author on hisresume.


Collectors havefun on a special

‘Trade Night’Tonawanda’s Jim Lyons

has baseball cards datingback to 1933 but admits he’salways trying toimprove on hisvast hockey cardc o l l e c t i o n .Lockport’s EdFink, a longtimesports card dealerin Cheektowaga,shows up tosocialize “and talkto the guys.” ForSteve Paladino ofClarence, thegame plan callsfor more TedWilliams cardsand some RockyColavito cards.

These veterancard collectors aretypical of thesports collectorswho show uponce a month on TradeNight at Center Ice SportsCards in Tonawanda. Theyeat the free pizza and enjoythe atmosphere at CenterIce, located at 1592 NiagaraFalls Blvd.

Store owner Al Pittaway,48-year-old father of two,started the Trade Night twoyears ago and October’sshow marked 27 consecu-tive months the special two-

hour get together tookplace. The 28th straightTrade Night will take placeNov. 17.

“We get people into thestore,” Pittaway, a Rochesternative and longtime hockeyfan, explained. “Eachmonth the number of peo-

ple in here grows andgrows. We’ve had thousandsof dollars in cards swappedhere in the two years.”

Sports cards aren’t theonly items to be traded.You’ll find yearbooks, platesets, vintage sports gamesand McFarlane sports stat-ues available. “In time I’dlike to have the largestMcFarlane collection in theBuffalo area,” Pittaway said.

It was back in the mid-1970s that Pittaway gotstarted in sports col-lectibles. Besides BuffaloSabres contests, Pittawaycan be found at hockeymatches by the RochesterAmericans of the AmericanHockey League or

R o c h e s t e rInstitute ofTechnology inNCAA competi-tion.

Pittaway’s all-time hockeyhero? “That hasto be GilbertPerreault,” heanswered.

And why not?A NationalHockey LeagueHall of Famer,Perreault ownsmost of theSabres’ all-timerecords. Perreaultonce scored sevenpoints in a gameand was the NHL’sRookie of the Year

in 1970-71.There were more than 25

sports collectors whoshowed up for the OctoberTrade Night. They sippedtheir sodas, bit into pizzaand exchanged items at abrisk pace. I even saw a rare1955 Topps Willie Mayscard change hands.

The quick winning startby the Sabres has helped

Photo courtesy Center Ice Sports CardsPatrons enjoy a night of trading and refresh-ments during Trade Night at Center Ice SportsCards .

By Matthew Young

The 2011 Kane Memorialat Batavia Downs RaceTrack was won in recordtime earlier this October.The race’s ninthannual editionsaw AracacheHanover winwith a time of1:51 1/5th sec-onds on Oct. 8for the one-milerace. The previ-ous record foraged pacers wasset in 2008 byKenneth J. in atime of 1:52 flat.A r a c a c h eHanover paid$3.30 for win-ning wagers.

The race developed per-fectly for Aracache Hanoverand driver Trevor Henry.Silent Swing, driven by BradKramer, led most of the racewhile Henry and Aracachesat in second. The splitsposted by Silent Swing wereblazing fast; 26 2/5th for thetwo furlong split and 541/5th seconds for the halfmile. Despite such fastsplits, Silent Swing couldnot pull away from the tal-ented field. Right before thethree-quarter mile marker,Windfall Blue Chip chal-lenged the two leaders, andHenry seized this opportu-nity to break out from his

spot in second to go aroundSilent Swing on the far turn.Silent Swing and Kramercould not keep up, and ulti-mately tired to finish in

third for a show. Secondplace went to Power Of AMoment driven by JackFlanigen.

Aracache Hanover hasrecorded winnings of over$1,035,000 for ownersWilliam L. Switala andJames M. Martin ofClarence Center, N.Y.Despite the fact that hisowners are from the area,this was Aracache’s first raceat Batavia Downs. ToddHaight, General Manager ofLive Racing at BataviaDowns, commented thatthis is because the purses atBatavia Downs are usuallynot large enough to attract

talent of Aracache Hanover’sstature. The Kane Memorialis an exception and thecrowd in attendanceresponded in like form. The

on-track bet-ting handlefor this racewas up a totalof 42 percentfrom lastyear’s KaneM e m o r i a l .The total han-dle for theday was up 30p e r c e n t .H a i g h tbelieves thatthis isbecause of thegood weatherand the large

increase in talent that thisrace has attracted.

The horse’s performanceis all the more impressivebecause his regular driverwas not at the helm. DougMcNair was not able to raceon this day, so Trevor Henrystepped in and helpedsecure the win. “I thoughtTrevor drove a great race,”Haight commented. “He satin the two-hole until almostthe top of the stretch andwhen he got clear, AracacheHanover exploded withpace. We don’t get to seehim much here at theDowns because he does

Aracache Hanover shatters record atBatavia Downs

Photo by Paul WhiteAracache Hanover lowering the Batavia Downstrack record in the 2011 Robert J. Kane Memorialwith Trevor Henry in the ulky.

Collecting Memories with Mike Dyer

continued on page 15continued on page 15


By Kyle Soppe“Where there’s

a will, there’s away.”

C l i c h é ?Maybe. But thereis simply noother way todescribe theapproach ofplayers on theErie CommunityCollege footballteam. As a pro-gram with limit-ed recruitingresources andonly a two yearstay for most ofits players, ECChas overcomemany obstaclesto produce a pre-mier breedingground forDivision I ath-letes. Althoughthis doesn’talways lead toextreme successin terms of wins and losses(they have started slow thisyear with a 2-4 mark), thetrack record of player devel-opment is unquestioned.The ECC coaching staff, ledby Dennis Greene, hasexcelled at preparing theirstudent-athletes for footballat the next level; serving asanother step for talentedhigh school players to takeon their way of fulfilling alifelong dream.

Greene’s mindset is a sim-ple one: “You have them fortwo years. They don’t knowfootball. They’re just comingout of high school wherethey think they know foot-ball. They’re the guys whowere the man there and theycome here and you have toexplain the game, teachthem, and just when you gotthem right where you wantthem, they’re gone.”

The class of 2010 wasexceptionally talented, withseven players currently inFootball ChampionSubdivision (FCS) programs.Winning games is great, butECC has made it clear: thegoal is to give players achance to extend their play-ing careers.

Of the seven former ECCplayers, five are on thedefensive side of the ball:Destry Berry; Rashad Payne;Mohammed Saleh; EllieHyppolite; and MalcolmRicks. Berry was able to takethe experience he gained,and not only make the NewMexico Lobos roster, but tostart their season opener.The cornerback made fivetackles and added a passbreak up in a 14-10 loss toColorado State. Through sixgames this season, Berry hasmade 28 tackles, including acareer high of 11 on Oct. 15at Nevada. Payne, whoearned second team All-Northeast FootballConference in 2010, is areserve cornerback atBethune-Cookman. He isviewed as an athletic play-maker that has the ability tobreak the game open withone play. He scored twice inhis two years at ECC via

interception. Saleh, whoonly spent one year at ECCbefore heading to MoreheadState, clearly benefited fromhis time in Buffalo. A nativeof Kissimmee, Fla., Salehcame to ECC to hone hisskills. He is learning fromwatching right now, but willlikely get an opportunity ona defensive unit that hasstruggled in 2011 (36.4points allowed per game).His build (5-foot-9, 190pounds) gives Saleh the abil-ity to be physical withreceivers at the line of scrim-mage, something many ofhis teammates cannot do.Hyppolite, who has the sizeto succeed at this level, sawlimited action in FloridaA&M’s season opener, andrecorded his first Division Itackle. He also spent onlyone year at ECC, but heimposed his will, registeringsix tackles (two behind theline of scrimmage) per game.Ricks has transformed froma versatile member of ECCto full-time linebacker atWingate. He led the 2010Kats in tackles (65) andcaught nine passes when lin-ing up as a WR. He has madean appearance in six ofWingate’s first seven games,totaling seven tackles, two ofwhich were behind the lineof scrimmage.

The success of ECC grad-uates, however, is not limit-ed to the defensive side ofthe ball. It is not uncommonfor undersized high schooltalents to be overlooked bybig time programs, and ECCbenefited greatly from thistrend. At 5-foot-9, utilityman Zedric Joseph standstwo inches taller than widereceiver Ben Pinkard.Joseph, a first team all con-ference RB in 2010 (teamhigh 4.9 yards per carry), is amember of the University ofMaine this season. The highschool track star has yet tosee any action this season,but his atheism would indi-cate the potential for that tochange. Maine is a nationallyranked team (12) that hasfaith in the ECC program,solidifying ECC as a devel-

opmental haven.Pinkard joinedECC teammateRicks at Wingate,and has made animmediate impact.He has nine catch-es through fourgames, more thanany college scoutwould have pre-dicted when he wasa high school sen-ior three shortyears ago.However, his talenthas been on displaythe most while onspecial teams. Forhis efforts againstBrevard college onSept. 24, Pinkardwas awarded “SACSpecial TeamsPlayer of the WeekAward.” The ECCgrad not onlyreturned a kickoffthe length of thefield for a TD, he

also returned a punt 49 yardslate in the game to set up thego-ahead touchdown. Hecompiled 204 all-purposeyards and served asSuperman on this day. In histwo years at ECC, he hadnearly 400 receiving yardsand a team high three TDs.Coach Greene attributes thesuccess of ECC graduates atthe next level to the workethic they developed while atthe junior college: “We workthem that hard so that whenthey leave here, that’s all theyknow and everything elseseems easy and they’re readyfor the next step,” Greeneexplained.

Coach Greene insistedthat he is no different thanany other junior collegecoach and refuses to take thecredit for his player’sachievements. He views him-self as more of a mentor thana football coach, allowinghim to teach his players lifelessons, which translate tofootball successes. “Lastyear, we had a lot of talent.We have to teach them howto grow up, how to play thegame, how to be graceful los-ers as well as winners. Ourjob is to make them adultsand send them to the nextlevel because, if we don’ttrain them, the four-yearschools won’t take them.That’s why the job is so hard,so frustrating: but yet sorewarding because you seethem go on. It’s what we do,that’s what a junior collegecoach does. He has threehats: recruiter, retain themand send them on. I just likeseeing the kids move on andbe successful.”

The ability to step backand look at the “big picture”is a quality that Greene clear-ly embodies, and drives hissuccess.

When asked if he was sur-prised by how many of hisformer players appeared on aDI roster this year, Greenegave a simple answer. “Theydid what they’re supposed todo; take care of business, gettheir degree and get a chanceto move on and play.”

ECC: Excellent college coaching

Photo courtesy ECC AthleticsAfter just one season at ECC, Ellie Hyppolite hasbrought his imposing presence to Florida A&M.

By Kyle Soppe

Cody Campbell and hisPurple Eagle teammatescome into the 2011-12 sea-son with optimism andpromise as a “tight knit” coreis joined by talented new-comers. Winsfigure to comeat a premium,as theyopened withtwo nationallyranked teamsin Michiganand Unionand two diffi-cult roadgames againstRIT and AirForce, but thePurple Eaglesare up for achallenge.

Campbell,the team’ss t a r t i n ggoalie, joinedthe squad inthe secondsemester oflast year as afreshman. Hehad an imme-diate impact,starting nineof the 12games heappeared in last season, andhas stepped into the primaryrole as a sophomore. I satdown with the ColoradoSprings product to discussthe early season as well asthe forecast for this year’sPurple Eagles.

Campbell was born andraised in Colorado, but hasbeen on the road since heturned 16. He made hockeystops in North Dakota andIowa before landing a spoton Niagara’s roster in thewinter of 2011. He was givenan opportunity to play rightaway and gained “valuableexperience.” With a savepercentage of .895 againstDivision 1 competition,Campbell was able to devel-op the confidence it takes tobe successful. “It was goodto get my feet wet,”Campbell explained. “Theexperience prepared me tostep up and be ‘the guy’ thisseason. I was able to identifysome weakness, and work to

improve them.”Campbell clearly expected

to perform at a high levelthis season, but his perform-ance on Oct. 8 was perfec-tion; literally

In just his 10th career

start, Campbell shut out theRIT Tigers in a defensive bat-tle that resulted in a 0-0 tie.The performance earned thePurple Eagle “AtlanticHockey Association’s Co-Goaltender of the Week”honors. Despite a careerhigh 30 saves, Campbellcredited his defense for his“special night.”

“The defense was great,”the sports managementmajor explained. “Frompenalty killing to blockingshots to limiting secondchances, they played greatand put me in a position tosucceed.”

If you think that the shutout has gone to his head, justask Campbell about his dailypreparation. “I treat everyday, game or practice, thesame. You can’t expect tocome out and succeed ongame day without a solidweek of practice.”

Statistically speaking, thisis a game he will truly

remember, but it was the fol-lowing game that will hold aspecial spot in the net-min-der’s heart.

The Purple Eagles headedsouthwest on Oct. 14 tosquare off against Air Force.

A dreaded flightfor most, but forCampbell, it wasa trip home. Forthe past fouryears, he hasbeen all over theU.S. playing thesport he loveswithout the peo-ple he lovesbeing able tofollow. Thoughhe hasn’t livedwith his familysince his sopho-more year inhigh school,C a m p b e l lacknowledgedthat he wouldn’tbe where he istoday withouthis family’s loveand support. “Itwas nice to seesmiling faces inthe crowd.[Family andfriends] havebeen behind me

the whole way.” Air Forcedefeated Niagara in an over-time thriller, 3-2, droppingthe Purple Eagles at the timeto 0-1-1.

Don’t fret NU hockey fans;the record isn’t indicative ofthe potential of this year’steam. “We aren’t going to beoutworked. Ever.” Campbellemphatically stated. “Withthe talent we have, the goalswill come. And when theydo, we have a chance to dospecial things.”

From a personal stand-point, Campbell wants onesimple thing; to play hockeyas long as he physically can.“Obviously the ultimate goalis the NHL. But more thananything, I just want to keepplaying hockey. I am a bigbeliever in living in the pres-ent, and enjoying it. I amfocused on Niagara hockeyand my [sport’s manage-ment] degree for now. Thefuture will take care ofitself.”

Between the pipes with Cody Campbell

Photo by Mike MajewskiNiagara’s Cody Campbell earned Atlantic Hockey’s co-goaltender of the week honors the hard way; stoppingall 30 shots to play RIT to a scoreless tie.


By Adam McGill

The first half of the colle-giate women’s tennis seasonconcluded at the end ofOctober, and it came withsome impressive acco-lades. Five local studentstook the trip to regionalsin Connecticut, and thegirls gave WNY a strongshowing in the 128-play-er field.

Niagara UniversityNiagara has one of the

youngest squads in thenation, with six fresh-men, and one junior onthe roster. They had apromising first half of theyear, and the team hadthe honor of sending sev-eral players to Yale tocompete, but they unfor-tunately came homeempty-handed. Their twoentrants suffered a toughloss in the ITA/USTANortheast Regionals toround out the PurpleEagles’ fall schedule.

The only non-fresh-man on the squad thisyear was junior HilaryHansen, and she was eas-ily the team’s ace. Sheearned the number one seedin her side of the round of128, but fell to the ninthseeded Misia Krasowskifrom Brown University.Hansen lost in straight sets6-4 and 6-4. She had one ofthe best first half’s in schoolhistory by finishing 5-2. Shealso won the Flight A Titleat the Niagara Invitational,and took runner up in theBison Quad at Bucknell. Shewill come back extra moti-vated after the loss, and willbe a dangerous opponentthis winter.

Also making the trip toNew Haven for the PurpleEagles was freshman MariaOrtiz, who lost to RhodeIsland’s Tristany Leikem in

singles action 6-3, 6-2. Ortizalso was involved in dou-bles action with fellowfreshman Ashley Ta in thetournament. The duo com-peted strong, but lost toColumbia’s Nicole Bartnikand Crystal Leung, 8-1, in ahard-to-watch finale.

NU returns to the courtfor their spring season onFeb. 10, hosting a matchagainst Colgate beginning at5 p.m. The team has ayoung core of players mov-ing forward, and will onlyget better as they maturetogether.

University at BuffaloThe Bulls also were fortu-

nate enough to be able tosend two of their players tothe ITA/USTA Northeast

Regionals at Yale to par-ticipate. Like Niagara,however, their twoentrants came homewith similar results.

Marta Stoyanova wasone of only two localplayers to make it pastthe first round and intothe field of 64.Stoyanova won heropening match againstPrerana Appineni fromStony Brook 6-3 and 7-6.However, the Bulgarianlost her second match toPenn’s Augustina SolEskenazi, 6-2 and 7-5, intwo very high pacedmatches. She is theleader of this Bulls’ teamand will carry the pro-gram through the secondhalf of the season.

Buffalo also sent trans-fer student Tanvi Shah toregionals, and the under-classman received a firstround bye with a 4-3

overall record. However,Shah suffered a tough lossin the second round toCornell’s Abby Liu instraight defeats, 6-0 and 6-4. Shah has played strong sofar in her first year, and willbe critical for the Bulls’ intheir second half push.

Buffalo reopens women’stennis for their springschedule with a Jan. 29game versus the SyracuseOrange. The team will prac-tice often during the break,and will come back eager toresume play.

Women’s collegiate tennis finishes first set

Photo by Paul Hokanson/UB AthleticsMarta Stoyanova, leader of thelady Bulls, won her first match ofITA/USTA Northeast Regionalsonly to lose in the second round.

Last call forfall,

but ice willbe nice

The fall harvest is under-way, and while many take tothe woods in pursuit of gameboth big and small, lakes andstreams still hold excitementfor the hearty, as the last of theopen water fishing requiresbundling up and bravingvolatile weather to get onsome hot fishing action.Winter is right around the cor-ner, which means the ice isn’tfar behind.

Trout and SalmonGreat Lakes feeder streams

benefitted from the wetOctober and flow levels havetrout running in both LakeErie and Ontario tributaries.Salmon still show in someLake Ontario streams, but thebulk of the run is done, givingway to steelhead and browntrout activity. Fly casters pre-senting egg patterns workpools and riffles to drawstrikes from hungry pre-spawn browns and ‘bowsalike. Popular spots like BurtDam require early arrivals toget a spot, but action can benon-stop at times.

Lake Erie tributaries nowshow good fish, especiallyCattaraugus Creek from themouth to Gowanda, but runsin recent years have not beenwhat they were. Nonetheless,fish are now entering thestreams and this is the time ofyear rainbow and brownsshow their strongest, offeringsome incredible action withhard-charging runs and acro-batic leaps. Drifters workingegg sacs under a float also dovery well with the bite typical-ly sustained throughout theday. Best times are still earlyand late in the day, but actionaround noon offers rewardsfor the not-so-early risers.

Yellow PerchLake Erie ringbacks still

delight hearty anglers willingto brave colder winds on thewater, with emerald shinersbeing the must-have bait toput fish in the box. Depthrange for these popular panfish extends from 45 to 71 feetin water typically west of

Sturgeon Point. When condi-tions permit, a good outingcan result in fast limits whenworking minnows tight tobottom.

Chautauqua Lake perchcontinue to amaze, and recentDEC trawling survey show thelake is loaded with yellowperch, which could start nega-tively impacting overall size offish in a few short years.However, anglers fishing bothbasins, shallow or deep, findsizeable fish and lots of themfor the frying pan. Certifiedminnows work well, but donot overlook a grub, waxworm or night crawler seg-ment as well.

Ice WatchIt’s that time of year again

when hard water enthusiastswatch the weather and inven-tory their ice fishing gear inpreparation for the winter funahead. With forecasters pre-dicting a colder than normalwinter, perhaps this is the sea-son you, too, will try yourluck on the ice?

Holiday season is fastapproaching, and now is agood time to make that wishlist. Many area tackle shopsand sporting goods stores nowhave on display the newshanties for the 2012 season,as well as rods, reels, augers,fish finders and underwatercameras, plus essentials suchas waterproof boots andextreme weather outerwear.

Legacy 11Columbus Day weekend

2011 marked the largest com-munity service project ever tohappen in Western New York.Dubbed “Legacy 11” by theGreater Niagara FrontierCouncil (WNY Boy Scouts ofAmerica), over 1,100 scouts,from tiger cubs to eaglescouts, descended upon our

local parks (county, city andstate) to voluntarily upgradeand beautify facilities andamenities for all in our com-munity. One of the biggestcomponents of this projectwas the re-opening of theCommissioner’s Lake atChestnut Ridge Park, and theconstruction of a brand new,15 by 75 foot fishing pier,made with the help of SafariClub International volunteers.This project, two years in themaking, resulted in many,many improvements to ourpublic parks, expanding theusage potentials of these treas-ures immensely. Fishing at theCommissioner’s Lake is limit-ed to the pier only, as to helpkeep the berm erosion thatencapsulates this manmadelake to a minimum, andanglers are to practice catchand release fishing. No icefishing will be permitted, soanglers have a limited time tosee this new opportunity thisyear, but come spring, the lakewill be ready to rock for kidsof all ages (and their parents,too)!

Remember, take a kid fish-ing, and give the gift that lastsa lifetime.

Rich Davenport is co-founderof WeLoveOutdoors.com, anavid Outdoorsman and memberof the NYSOWA. His works arealso published in NY OutdoorNews, Walleye.com and theBuffalo News. Rich is also theRecording Secretary for the ErieCounty Federation ofSportsmen’s Clubs, Secretary ofthe Western NY EnvironmentalFederation, member of the ErieCounty Fisheries AdvisoryBoard and is the Co-Chairmanand Region 9 Rep NYSCC BigGame Committee. [email protected].

Photo by Rich DavenportWNY Boy Scouts put the finishing touches on the new fishingplatform at the commissioner’s lake in Chestnut Ridge Park.The lake is once again open for public fishing!

Doctari’s Fishing Forum with Rich Davenport

By Brian Michalek

At East High School inBuffalo, Sandra Nesbitt isjust like any other coach:hard working; dedicated toher student’s success; inspi-rational.

What is surprising, how-ever, is her choice of sport;football. As the JV coach ofthe Panthers, coach Nesbittis not only teaching skillsto help her players excel onthe field but also in life. Noone embodies the life offootball more than Nesbitt.Not only is she a teacher ofthe game, she is also a play-er, competing in theWomen’s Football League.Even before her appoint-ment at East High, Nesbitthad a great love for thegame.

“I started playing footballwhen I was about 32 or33,” Nesbitt explained. “It’sbeen a passion for me sinceI was young. I played two-hand touch football withmy brothers and sisters. I’vebeen doing this for a longtime.”

Nesbitt’s time in the WFLhas taken her many places,and given her many experi-ences. “I’ve played for a few

teams,” Nesbitt said. “I’veplayed for the Empire StateRoar out of Rochester. I alsoplayed three years for the

New York Nemesis, and lastseason I played for a team inErie, Pa. called the ErieIllusion. I got drafted thisyear and I will be playingfor a team in Connecticut.Our season doesn’t startuntil May or June. Our firstpractice starts in October.I’m injured, but I am still

getting ready to play.”A teacher as well as a stu-

dent, Nesbitt has made themost of her WFL time.“With the last three years Ihave been playing I havelearned a whole lot,”Nesbitt said. “Knowing thepositions and great playershas helped me with coach-ing.”

Coach Nesbitt not onlyuses her experiences on thegridiron to teach football toher players, but also tries toteach her players life skills“I emphasize to my playersabout being men,” Nesbittsaid. “That doesn’t meannecessarily mean be roughand tough, but rather, beingresponsible and respectfulfor what you do. It’s part oflearning different aspect offootball. Learn the part oflife, not just football, butlife itself.”

Not only is Nesbitt reach-ing goals and completingdreams she set for herself,she is teaching football fun-damentals and life skills tostudents that will hopefullysend them on the right pathin life.

East High Football: Sandra Nesbitt at the Helm of the JV Panthers

Photo courtesy Sandra NesbittWhat Coach Sandra Nesbitthad learned as a player onthe gridiron, she teaches asJV Football Coach at EastHigh School.

During his ten year career withthe Bills, No. 67 Kent Hull wasalways there for Jim Kelly. Thebig center was a constant on

the K-gun offense and was elected tothree pro-bowls as well as the Bill’s 50thAnniversary all-time team for his out-standing play. Beyond the field, Hull wasa respected member of the team; a down-to-earth farmboy from Mississippi whokept his teammates —even a star quar-terback —grounded. He will not just bemissed by Western New York, but by thewhole professional football community.

Photo courtesy Buffalo Bills


By Mike Fox

Fitz, Fred and therest of the Bills seemintent on making aplayoff push thisseason, so we’ll con-tinue to keep thefootball vibes com-ing, with anotherforay into the NFLrecord archives.

1. Who is the onlyplayer with twocareer games of 270or more yards fromscrimmage?

a. Corey Dillonb. Flipper

Andersonc. Jamal Lewisd. Marshall Faulk2. Josh Cribbs

holds the careerrecord for most kickreturns for touch-downs, with eight.Who ranks secondall-time, with seven?

a. Devin Hesterb. Dante Hallc. Brian Mitchelld. Leon Washington3. Who was the last play-

er to lead the league insacks for two consecutiveyears?

a. Jared Allenb. DeMarcus Warec. Reggie Whited. Kevin Greene4. Who is the only quar-

terback ever to lead theleague in passing yards forfour consecutive years?

a. Otto Grahamb. Peyton Manningc. Dan Marinod. Dan Fouts5. Only two players have

had two career games with15 or more receptions,Brandon Marshall andwhom?

a. Marvin Harrisonb. Andre Reedc. Wes Welkerd. Jimmy Smith6. Who is the only active

player ever to have twogames in the same season

with four rushing touch-downs?

a. Adrian Petersonb. DeAngelo Williamsc. LaDainian Tomlinsond. Clinton Portis7. Which of these quar-

terbacks has never passedfor 500 or more yards in asingle game?

a. Matt Schaubb. Tom Bradyc. Ben Roethlisbergerd. Drew Brees8. Neil Rackers holds the

record for most field goalsin a season with 40. Whichactive kicker is tied for sec-ond all-time, with 39?

a. David Akersb. Adam Vinatieric. Olindo Mared. Nate Kaeding9. Who is the only quar-

terback ever to be sackednine times in one game?

a. Aaron Rodgersb. Ryan Fitzpatrickc. Matt Hasselbeckd. Jay Cutler10. Wes Welker is the

only player ever to recordthree seasons with at least110 receptions. Who is theonly other active player toreach the 110 mark twice?

a. Roddy Whiteb. Hines Wardc. Brandon Marshalld. No other active player

has done it more than once.

NFL trivia

Photo by Mike MajewskiDevin Hester is the career leaderin punt return touchdowns, with 11.Is he also No. 1 in kick return TD’s?

Upcomingpro

wrestling and MMAevents

By Ivan the Impaler

Don’t have any incentiveto write anything else thismonth … Jon “Bonez” Joneswill defend the UFC LightHeavyweight Title againstLyoto Machida in Torontoon Dec. 10 ...Wrestling fansshould check out Ring ofHonor TV, now on Fox 29 at11 p.m. on Sunday nights… WWE returns to townfor a house show on Dec.29; rumor is that Booker Tmay be back in the ring bythen. In an upcoming issue:The Hardy Boyz learn aboutNorth Carolina drug laws.

Saturday, Nov. 12 - ESW -St. Johnsburg Fire Hall,Ward Rd. - N. Tonawanda,

N.Y. - 6 p.m.Satuday, Nov. 12 - UFC

on FOX 29 TV - Anaheim,Calif. -Cain Velasquez vs.Junior Dos Santos for theUFC Heavyweight Title;Ben Henderson vs. ClayGuida - 9 p.m.

Thursday, Nov. 17 - CWI- Rapids Theatre, NiagaraFalls, N.Y. - 7 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 3 - NWANY - Eagles Club, 1200Buffalo Road - Rochester,N.Y. - 6 p.m. … The NWA

North American TagTeam titles will be on theline.

Saturday, Dec. 10 - UFCPPV- Air Canada Centre,Toronto, Ontario, Canada -5 p.m. Bonez Jones vs.Lyoto Machida.

Thursday, Dec. 29 -WWE (Smackdown) HouseShow - First Niagara Center- Buffalo, N.Y. - 7 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 29 - TNAImpact - Times UnionCenter, Albany, N.Y. - 7:30p.m.

TELEVISIONThe Hippest Wrestling

Program in WNY isWrestlevision Presents NoLimits TV. Catch the action,

manufactured by Big GuyProductions on the follow-ing stations:

In Rochester at 3 p.m.Sundays on My18 (WBGT-TV). (Replays lateWednesday/Early Thursdayat 2:30 a.m., as well as lateSaturday/early Sunday at 2p.m.).

For Suburban ErieCounty, it’s on Time-WarnerCable Channel 20 everySaturday at 4 p.m., withreplays Mondays at 11:30p.m.

In Elmira/Corning, stayglued to WYDC-TV (BigFox) at 1:30 a.m. lateSaturday/early Sunday. Or,watch WJKP-TV (Channel39) Sundays at 4 p.m.

Note- Wrestlevision isnow on that Twitter thing.

RADIOListen to The Pain Clinic

every Saturday at 10 a.m. onWHTK-AM (1280) inRochester. Cashman RichJones has weekly prize give-aways worth thousands ofdollars. You can also listenonline atwww.feelthepain.net

By Bob CaicoNick Casal of Niagara

Falls (22-4-1, 17 KOs)scored a third-round TKOover Michael Anderson(11-1-1) at the StaplesCenter in Los Angeles onOct. 15. Casal hadAnderson down twicebefore the referee merciful-ly called a halt in thescheduled six-round wel-terweight bout.

••••••••Light heavyweight

Lionell Thompson ofBuffalo improved to 10-0when he won a unanimoussix-round decision overAbdullah Ramadan (15-11)in Mississauga, Ontario onOct. 22. Lionell is now pro-moted by Hennessy Sportswho are based in Ontarioand in England. Lionell’snext fight will be inManchester, UnitedKingdom on Nov. 12.

••••••••Speaking of Hennessy

Sports, Ross “The Boss”Thompson who recentlyannounced his retirementfrom the ring will be one oftheir lead trainers for theorganization in Ontario.Ross trains LionellThompson and ColumbianSamuel Vargas (8-0-1) whoresides in Mississauga.

••••••••Lightweight Guillermo

Sanchez (13-3-1) looks toget his career back on trackwhen he battles Mark Davis

(15-0, 5 KOs) in Clevelandfor the WBC USNBC superfeatherweight title on Nov.12.

••••••••Ray Casal will hold Fight

Night II at Casal’s BoxingClub at 1767 Maryland Ave.in Niagara Falls onSaturday Nov. 19 at 7:30p.m. Mike Glavin ofNiagara Falls goes upagainst Jeffery Ngayot ofthe Buffalo PAL in the mainevent.

••••••••At Singer’s gym: 55 years

ago this month (November27, 1956) Joey Giambra(47-4-1) defeated SammyWalker (46-46-6) by 10-round unanimous decision

in the MemorialAuditorium main event. Inother bouts that eveningBobby Scanlon improved to21-0-1 with an eight deci-sion over Harvey Charles.Stan Fitzgerald (4-0)defeated Lee Bohles (37-18)in six rounds. RichieTodaro and RockyFumerelle both won four-round decisions in theirprofessional debuts.Giambra, Scanlon,Fitzgerald, Bohles andFumerelle are all in theBuffalo Boxing Hall of Fameand the latter three stillattend Ring 44 monthlymeetings. Tom Lippes wasthe promoter of the show.

Local boxing happenings

Joey Giambra (left) the then 10th ranked middleweight of theworld throws a hard left to the jaw against Sammy Walker ofMassachusetts in the eighth round of their main event at theAud.

Answers1. a 2. d 3. c 4. d 5. c6. b 7. a 8. c 9. d 10. d


hockey collectors in WesternNew York. “My e-mail list isgrowing daily,” Pittawayexplained. “Collectors cancontact me by calling716.957.3742 or sendingemail [email protected].”

The sports card tradersranged in age from teenagersto collectors in their 80s.They passed sports cards forWillie McCovey, MichaelJordan and Marcel Dionneand sat at long, woodendesks to prepare for trades.

Steve Paladino, a formerU.S. Air Force sergeant,looked around the well-litstore. “We all have a com-mon bond,” he said. “Wecome from different back-grounds but we share aninterest in sports.”

The Clarence resident

pointed outhe was once abatboy for the

Boston Red Sox and set up atFenway Park. “I collect allsports but I like baseball themost,” he said. “I have manyautographed jerseys and I’mtrying to finish the 1959Fleer Ted Williams set.”

His first cards were pur-chased in 1956 when thegum packs sold for only anickel. Paladino is retiredfrom the U.S. Air. “Age does-n’t matter to those who showup here every month,” heconcluded.

A hockey collector,Tonawanda’s Jim Lyons con-centrates on his Sabres cardcollection. A Bryant &Stratton College graduate,Lyons is proudest of his 1933Goudey Billy Herman card.

Ed Fink savors footballthe most. His favorite playerwas Thurman Thomas but

Jim Kelly and Andre Reedare a close second and third.“Outside of the Bills, Iadmired Emmitt Smith andBarry Sanders the most,”Fink said, “It’s a shameSanders retired before beat-ing Walter Payton’s careerrushing record.”

Fink also sells sports col-lectibles at the weekend FleaMarket shows inCheektowaga.

Upcoming eventsNext area shows are slated

for Nov. 9 and Dec. 14 at theLeonard VFW Post onWalden Avenue inCheektowaga. Shows, withfree admission, begin at 5p.m. and end at 9 p.m.

Cheektowaga’s Mike Dyer,who also sets up at area sportscard shows, began collecting in1948. A retired sports writerand book author, he can bereached [email protected].

Collecting from page 11

most of his driving inCanada but he’s a very capa-ble reinsman.”

Currently trained byGregg McNair, AracacheHanover was purchased for$37,000 at Hanover Farms.Based upon recent races andworkouts, co-owner Switalawas convinced that his horsewould be successful goinginto the Kane. “We antici-pated him to break thatrecord,” Switala said. AsAracache ends his career as a4-year-old, Switala plans on

seeing what he can do as a 5-year-old. “We’ll definitelyrace him as a 5- year-old…We’re going to keep him rac-ing this year and take eachrace step by step.”

When his career doescome to an end, Aracache’sconnections have tentativeplans already laid out. “We’dlike to see [Aracache]become a stud, and help gethis name out,” Switala said.With his record, this should-n’t be too hard.

For 2011, the horse has

raced consistently in the topthree places. Aracacherecently faced his toughestchallenge of his career whenhe ran in the $500,000Breeders’ Crown Open Pacemile on Oct. 29 at WoodbinePark in Ontario, Canada. Inthe 11 horse field, he had amorning line of 15-1, butwent on to finish seventhoverall with 20-1 odds.Despite his seventh placefinish, Aracache ran a per-sonal record of 1:49 4/5, atime that was over 2 secondsfaster than his KaneMemorial record.

Batavia Downs from page 11

Sports and Leisure Magazine - November 2011 - Buffalo

Documents

Transcript of Sports and Leisure Magazine - November 2011 - Buffalo