Phil entered the home team's locker room and headed to his locker. Some team members were still around the locker room, most dressed in street clothes and others in towels. Around his locker, dozens of reporters huddled up, their questions and recording devices ready. Phil took a deep breath and sat down on the stool. Like vultures seeing dead prey, reporters circled Phil and asked him unrelenting questions.
"That's your fifth missed field goal in three games, is it more mental than physical?" An older reporter asked. Phil looked up at the eager reporter and shook his head. "Right now, it could be. I have some thinking to do." Phil had been an NFL kicker for almost two decades and he made game-winning kicks in some of the biggest moments in football, including the Super Bowl. "Are you thinking of retirement? Has the front office talked to you?" another reporter asked. Phil sat up and battled through the thoughts in his head, "I will talk to the coaches, the team and see what they think. I just want to help this team win games,” he said. Despite the chaotic atmosphere, Phil still felt comfortable in the locker room. It was what he had known best his entire life. Yet, he was more accustomed to answering positive questions, ones that made him feel invincible and important. He also enjoyed the banter between teammates, the constant presence of trainers, and being in a place that made him matter. It all felt right to Phil, and it was a lot better than following through with retirement, even though he was 44 years old. Up to this point in his life, Phil only focused on his career. He kicked every day, ate right and always tried to be a better kicker. As a result, he never had meaningful relationships outside of football. Phil didn't have any children or a lot of communication with his family either. The reporters left Phil, and the team's newly drafted quarterback walked toward the aggrieved kicker. "Hey, I was in middle school when you were making those Super Bowl-winning kicks man. You are the best kicker of all time! We got your back, I know you have two more years in ya!" he exclaimed brightly. "Thanks, Tom. You guys, and the defense have been playing great. If I get my head on straight, we will be a good team in all three facets." Phil needed to hear this, as he didn't know what the team was thinking with a record of 1-2, and Phil's missed kicks were the headlining issue. The locker room cleared out, earlier than usual due to the close loss. Phil dumped his jersey, pants, and socks into the laundry bin and headed toward the exit. "Phil, everything ok?" Bill Jackson, the head coach asked. Jackson was known to be cold and jagged and he would cut players at the drop of a pin. "I am fine, coach. Don't give up on me just yet.” “Phil, you’ve had an incredible career. I want you to be remembered correctly.” “What do you mean by that?” “Phil, it’s clear you’ve lost something. Don’t you want to be remembered as the hero?” “I am not done yet, coach.” “Phil, I know how much work you put into this, but don’t overdo it. Breathe and remember, most don’t play this game for as long as you.” The old veteran player left the brand new billion-dollar stadium and headed to his car, a midnight green Tesla. Phil loved the purple, orange-filled sky as he headed home after a game. He arrived at his home and jokingly said, “Honey, I am home,” to his empty-filled house. Nobody ever replied. Phil went straight to his office. Inside, framed jerseys peppered the wall, awards were stacked high in one corner of the room and a movie-theater sized screen took up an entire wall of the room. The ground was painted like a football field, and the ceiling was painted with four Super Bowl trophies. At his age, Phil wasn't on social media and he preferred calling to texting. He didn’t see the point of it all, as he liked old-fashioned conversations. Phil called his special teams coach. "Hey coach, mind sending me the tape from today?" he asked in a tired, defeated voice. "I will have it to you in 10 minutes, Phil. You never take a break, do ya?" Coach Lynn chuckled. He knew Phil wanted to play for two decades. Phil dove into the game-tape and watched his four kicks from earlier in the day. He watched them frame-by-frame and analyzed each kick like a mother bear to her cub. He stood up and emulated his motions in the mirror, he then ran on the treadmill and continued to watch his kicks. He peeked out of his window and saw the pitch-black sky. Phil decided to call a quality control coach. Typically, a young coach who wanted their foot in the door had this role, so a call from a living legend like Phil was always accepted, no matter the time. "Sean, I need you to make me a video of all my kicks from this season," he demanded. While he waited for the new film, he ate dinner, a plant-based meal made by his chef with the food he bought from the local market earlier. As he ate, he murmured to himself, "Got to get better, Phil. C'mon." Phil was obsessed about his craft. He always had been, but that passion took a toll on him. All he knew was football when things on the field weren't going right, his entire life felt like a nightmare. Due to his obsessive work-ethic, Phil didn't have many people who he was close with, and nobody close enough to talk about his emotions with. He noticed a new email, it was the edited video. He watched and took notes for several hours. This was his life. It was going wrong for the first time in his career. It was week four of the NFL season. Phil had to be at the stadium at 7 a.m. He naturally woke up at 3 a.m. and was there by 5 a.m. He lightly jogged around the field and stretched his legs and torso. He set up the battery-powered field goal holder at the 25-yard line and started his routine. He made three field goals before moving the kicking tee back seven yards. When he was at the 46-yard line, he heard "Big day for you, Phil" Coach Jackson yelled out. He scanned Phil head to toe with a scrutinizing gaze. Phil ignored the way his stomach clenched. "I feel better, coach. I feel like myself." Phil went back to kicking for half an hour before he headed back to the locker room. He gathered himself at his locker and decided to watch his kicks from the previous week. "Ah, dammit! There it is, I keep taking an extra step before the kick." Phil always felt nervous before games. The butterflies never stopped fluttering in his stomach, but this time he felt more than usual. Phil wanted an opportunity at a kick early in the game. He wanted to get it out of his system and finally breathe that sigh of relief. The game went on and the defense was the story, as few points were scored by either offense for the bulk of the game. The two teams combined for 17 punts in over three quarters. It was 3-0 heading late into the fourth before Phil finally had an opportunity to tie the game. It was a 39-yard field goal attempt. He jogged out on the field, set up and kicked it. The ball sounded like an explosion off his foot, and it traveled through the air and looked true the entire way. Then it hit the goalpost and fell harmlessly to the ground. Phil turned white. He couldn't believe it. He jogged to the sidelines. This time, no teammates were there to offer encouragement. The team met in the locker room and coach Jackson delivered a short speech. "Way to battle. We have things to evaluate over the bye week. See you tomorrow, men." As usual, the media showed up in the locker room. However, there were more vultures hovering over Phil this time. "Was this your last game?" a reporter shouted. "I am not sure." Phil quietly said. "What happened? You were clutch. Did father time catch up to you?" “Are you going to announce retirement?” “Will you consider coaching?” “How do you feel?” “Are you injured?” He felt the room spin around him, he had never felt like this before. His heart pounded. He couldn’t breathe. His lungs tightened like a snake ready for dinner, his eyesight blurred, and he felt light-headed. Phil had fell back on the floor and teammates scurried toward the fallen legend. Reporters shouted questions and filmed the collapse. Coaches and the team doctor stormed in and forced media out of the locker room, threatening lawsuits. The team doctor knelt down, his fingers pressed against Phil’s neck. Meanwhile, trainers tried to keep concerned teammates and coaches back from scene. The suspense-filled room awaited the doctor’s ruling in silence. The team doctor shrugged in agreement with Coach Jackson. “It’s alright. He will not need a trip to the hospital,” the doctor said as Phil slowly regained consciousness. Animated teammates rejoiced, and the entire room took a collective sigh of relief and gathered around Phil. Teammates patted his back and shoulders, unable to keep themselves from smiling. “Alright, he needs some treatment and further evaluation to be safe. Give him some space.” Coach Jackson said. He asked the team to clear the locker room and zeroed in on Phil. “Are you feeling well enough to drive home?” “Yes, I am coach.” “What the hell happened?” “Coach, I’ve never felt that way before. I couldn’t think. It was the first time I ever fainted too.” Phil said, astonished. “That was a grim situation to be in, Phil.” “I survived.” “Well, I’m glad you’re okay.” “Actually, coach, it made me realize something.” “That’s good. Phil, this isn’t easy. You know how much respect I have for you, and you mean so much to this team and league.” “Thank you, coach.” “The best thing for the team would be for me to…” Phil nodded his head as he listened to Coach Jackson. He heard words like “retirement,” “years,” and “money.” But Phil’s eyes stayed on his locker, at his nameplate and the meaningful knick-knacks he had collected over the years. Coach was still talking. “I hear you. I’m going to retire.” Phil quietly said
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Currently, San Diego State and Waze are offering $2 off rides until Dec. 31 for the holiday season.
This partnership was in place last year. “Waze and iComute reached out to us.” Debbie Richeson, Director of parking and transportation services said over email. “At the time, we only had Zimride for a car-sharing service and we felt other alternatives would be beneficial to our campus community.” To sign up, students can visit Waze Carpool and enter their SDSU email to trigger the promotion. Once signed up, students may choose who they carpool with through the Waze carpool app. It offers the ability to filter potential carpool matches or the opportunity to create your own group of carpoolers. Public relations senior Ripsime Avetisyan believes the promotion is a valuable. “My biggest concern around the holidays is driving because I’m afraid of drunk drivers,” Avetisyan said. “Kids around campus should be having fun but part of having fun is learning to do it responsibly and the carpool discount sounds like the way to do it.” SDSU plans to keep the Waze partnership and deemed it successful. “I would say that partnering with Waze has been successful.” Richeson said, “We have no plans to change our partnership and would still like to work with Waze.” SDSU Parking and transportation services do not have their September or October data, but they shared their August statistics. Marketing senior Elizabeth Popova doesn’t think discounted carpools will lessen traffic around campus. “I don’t think $2 is a big enough incentive. Popova said. “So I think traffic will stay more or less the same.” Who is in better shape going into next season? The answer is LeBron James.
Sure, the Lakers are a mess upstairs, they don't have a coach currently and their chances of landing free agents appear dismal. James' legacy is set. He will go down as a top 3 player to ever do it regardless of what happens in the last 3 years of his career. He's in LA. The Lakers have only 5 players under contract going into next season. They have a max slot available, they have assets to trade and a lottery pick. Kyrie Irving is damn-near screwed. He had it great with LeBron James in Cleveland, but demanded to be traded because he wanted to be the leader, he wanted his own team. Now, Irving's team was eliminated in 5 games and the stories are he's a failed leader, Whatever Irving does, his legacy is tarnished. Go join LeBron or another great player and he's forever looked at as the second guy. Stay in Boston or join a team with no other superstars and have unfair media pressure to lead that team to win. San Diego State Dining has been offering meal plans to students for 45 years. The school offers multiple year-long commitment meal plans to freshman including the 10 Meal, Flex 5, Flex 7 and Meals Plus. Meal plans are required for all freshman.
Allowances and daily debit dollars do not carry over to the next day and are not refunded at any time. However, for the Meals Plus plan, declining balances and meals will roll over from the fall to spring semester if you stay on the plan. Keep in mind, no spring balances will roll over. The program offers year-long commitment meal plans to upperclassmen and commuters as well. These plans include Walkabout, power hike, and epic journey. Declining balances and meals will roll over from the fall to spring semester if you stay on the plan. However, no spring balances will roll over once the school year ends. So, what happens to the money students do not spend nor get refunded? SDSU’s Dining Director of 18 years, Paul Melchior said the funds go towards funding Aztec Shop’s operations. “Currently our meal plans are accepted at 45 locations on campus that’s a lot of variety that’s a lot of places to build and to staff and to open … That’s costly to do that,” Melchior said. “The part that’s left on the table helps fund that variety.” Melchior said SDSU Dining is a not-for-profit organization and relies heavily on students to fund its participating locations. “We don’t get anything from student fees or the state so we have to at least make enough money to run the program,” Melchior said. “The (funds students) spend helps fund the cost of the goods, the ingredients, the labor, the utilities, and all the supplies and all the other costs that go into it.” SDSU students have mixed emotions about meal plans. Mechanical engineering freshman Daniel Matsumoto said he is frustrated with the amount of money he’s lost from the way meal plans are done, but was relieved to hear where the money was going. “I can recall a lot of times where I didn’t use all my meal plan,” he said. “Therefore I lost the money. Honestly, it makes me angry that the money doesn’t roll over because we’re paying for the meal plan and I think we deserve to keep that money.” However, other students were strongly against the way the leftover meal plan funds are spent. Business marketing freshman Julian Cramer said the idea of forcing freshmen to have a meal plan in general does not sit well with her. “For freshman, there should be an option to not have a meal plan,” Cramer said.“Forcing us to have a meal plan is just a waste (of money).” Those statements were echoed by kinesiology junior Cullen Eckert, who is no longer on the school’s meal plans. “I don’t think it’s fair, we’re already paying so much for education,” he said. “We’re not paying for them to run the restaurants.” SDSU dining is doing away with the 10Meal plan next year according to Melchior. “The reason is because it’s the most restrictive.” He said, “It’s the hardest to use your funds because you got to use them twice a day, Monday through Friday, and you can only use them in one place.” AFC EAST
1. NE 10-6 2. MIA 7-9 3. NYJ 6-10 4. BUF 4-12 AFC NORTH 1. CLE 10-6 2. PIT 9-7 3. BAL 8-8 4. CIN 6-10 AFC SOUTH 1. JAX 10-6 2. HOU 10-6 3. TEN 8-8 4. IND 6-10 AFC WEST 1. LAC 10-6 2. KC 9-7 3. OAK 9-7 4. KC 8-8 NFC EAST 1.PHI 12-4 2.NYG 10-6 3.DAL 8-8 4.WSH 6-10 NFC NORTH 1.GB 11-5 2.CHI 10-6 3. MIN 8-8 4. DET 7-9 NFC SOUTH 1. NO 10-6 2. CAR 9-7 3. ATL 8-8 4. TB 5-11 NFC WEST 1. LAR 9-7 2. SF 8-8 3. SEA 8-8 4. AZ 4-12 1. Cleveland Browns - Sam Darnold
2. New York Giants - Saquon Barkley 3. Indianapolis Colts - Bradley Chubb 4.Cleveland Browns - Minkah Fitzpatrick 5. Denver Broncos - Josh Allen 6. New York Jets - Josh Rosen 7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Josh Jackson 8. Chicago Bears - Calvin Ridley 9. San Francisco 49ers - Quenton Nelson 10. Oakland Raiders - Derwin James 11. Miami Dolphins - Denzel Ward 12. Cincinnati Bengals - Vita Vea 13. Washington Redskins - Tremaine Edmunds 14. Green Bay Packers - Justin Reid 15. Arizona Cardinals - Baker Mayfield 16. Baltimore Ravens - Josh Jackson 17. Los Angeles Chargers - Lamar Jackson 18. Seattle Seahawks - Marcus Davenport 19. Dallas Cowboys - Raquan Smith 20. Detroit Lions - Christian Kirk 21. Buffalo Bills - Mason Rudolph 22. Buffalo Bills - Orlando Brown 23. Los Angeles Rams - Courtland Sutton 24. Carolina Panthers - Carlton Davis 25. Tennessee Titans - Sam Hubbard 26. Atlanta Falcons - Harold Landry 27. New Orleans Saints - Taven Bryan 28. Pittsburgh Steelers - Mike Gesicki 29. Jacksonville Jaguars - Connor Williams 30. Minnesota Vikings - Ronald Jones 31. New England Patriots - Jarie Alexander 32. Philadelphia Eagles - Leighton Vander Esch After acquiring the best record in the National Football League, the Philadelphia Eagles will continue to trend upwards, and win the Super Bowl come Feb. 4 2018. The Eagles are the most complete team in the NFL, and they have the leagues' best quarterback.
The most underrated aspect of the Super Bowl bound Eagles is their coaching staff. Second year head coach Doug Pederson has been preparing his team perfectly, and he knows how to keep them hungry. This offseason, Pederson’s goal was to create a family like atmosphere for the players, and he wanted to also create a sense of competition. He has been highly successful at both, as the Eagles have been soaring since pre season. Pederson is not only the head coach of the Eagles, but he is their offensive play caller. His scheme and experience have helped his offense mightily. He served as a backup quarterback in the NFL before becoming a coach. This allows him to connect with his quarterback before every snap. Carson Wentz is the quarterback of the Eagles, he is in his second year, and will win the Most Valuable Player come seasons end. Through the first nine weeks, Wentz leads the league in touchdown passes with 23 and has full control of Pederson’s offense. In his rookie year, Wentz had little to no help on the offensive side of the ball. The Eagles general manager Howie Roseman, quickly saw that and brought the sophomore help. Philadelphia brought in wide receivers Alshon Jefferey and Torrey Smith, two players who have payed instant dividends. The team also signed running back LeGarrette Blount, and just traded for Pro Bowl running back Jay Ajayi. Both running backs are aggressive runners, who help their team dominate time of possession. All this success running the ball is thanks to the Eagles having one of the best offensive lines in the whole league. On the defensive side of the ball, the Eagles have the best defensive coordinator in the NFL, Jim Schwartz. Philadelphia with out a doubt has the best defense in the NFL, their defensive line, line backers, and secondary have played light out all season long. The Eagles defense have tallied 25 sacks, 11 interceptions, and seven forced fumbles. Philadelphia’s defense also allows less than 70-rushing yards per game, which is best in the league. The most important parts of a successful football team is their offensive and defensive lines and the quarterback position, the Eagles ace all three categories. Besides the Eagles having the best defense, quarterback, and terrific coaching, the most impressive part of this team has been their ability to win while missing key players. Philadelphia will only get stronger as the season goes on, they are Super Bowl bound. The Cavs are 3-4.
Watching them it's hard to distinguish if they are playing better than last year or worst. Lebron James and the Cavs have a deeper team this year, but James is a passer. James cannot be a team's number one scoring option, he can't win like that. James has only won the championship when he had dynamic scorers next to him like: Kyrie Irving or Dwayne Wade in his prime. The Cavs will be a deep team when they have: Isaiah Thomas, Wade, Jae Crowder, Jeff Green, Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert, JR Smith, Kevin Love, Channing Frye, Kyle Korver, and Tristan Thompson together. The Cavs are deep, but do they have that elite scorer who King James can give the ball too and watch him go one on one? If not, they might not beat the Celtics, Bucks, or Wizards out East and won't come close to beating a Western team like the Warriors, Thunder, or Rockets. The Cavs truly messed up when they couldn't land a Jimmy Butler, Paul George, or even a Carmelo Anthony. James is great though, and my MVP pick, but he has to prove he can score at will, especially in clutch time without a dynamite scorer by his side. With his size and speed scoring should be easy, no matter how much time is left in the fourth quarter. I was at the Philadelphia Eagles vs Los Angeles Chargers game, and I felt bad for the Chargers.
There was probably 70-80 percent Eagles fans, and the majority of Charger fans seemed quiet and just flat-out un-interested. It appears that every Chargers 'home game' has more away fans than Charger fans. How do you expect a team to win, when they have zero home games? I do not blame the Chargers players, coaches, trainers, or scouts for being 0-4. I blame their owner for making the move to LA. Commissioner, Rodger Goodell, was at the game and he must of been appalled. The NFL must step in and take the Chargers out of LA. The person I feel for the most would be, Phillip Rivers. He competes every snap, every game and this must be extremely frustrating for the respected Rivers. RIVERS MUST DEMAND A TRADE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SEASON. Can you imagine Rivers on a team that actually has home games, or perhaps a defense, can you imagine Rivers on the Broncos, Bills, Dolphins, Bengals, Jaguars, Texans, or the Vikings? Carmelo Anthony has been traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Sam Presti, the best general manager in the NBA, does it again. Presti sent big man Enes Kanter, small forward Doug McDermott, and a second round pick. Kanter only played nine minutes a game in the playoffs last season, due to his lack of defensive talent. Mcdermott is just another guy, a very average NBA player therefore OKC stole Anthony.
Anthony is still a top-ten scorer in the NBA, ESPN's rankings were laughable, Anthony is a top-25 player in this league. While Russell Westbrook leads the charge, and Paul George and Anthony on the wings, look out. Head coach Billy Donovan will have to get these guys sharing the ball, which seems very likely, since all three of these All-Stars have played pick up together. This trade has propelled OKC to the second best team out West. GS, OKC, HOU, SAS, MIN, NO, DEN, POR. Those are the eight best teams out West. |
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