Washington Sports

The game was an exciting nail-bitter all the way to the end but the real story took place in the stands.

The day was September 6^th, 2010.    I awake much earlier than I normally do.   The day started for me at 7:30 am.   I was scheduled to meet some of my friends at the local Harris Teeter grocery store where a 70 foot RV would take us to Fed Ex field in Landover, Md.   When I arrived at the grocery store I met up with ten of my close friends that I have known for many years.   Four of them went to Virginia Tech and were very excited to go to Fed Ex field and see their number 10 football team play number 3 Boise State.   The other six of us had attended different colleges and weren’t huge VT fans but we went for the good times.

On the way to Fed Ex field we had a great time in my buddies 70 foot RV.   The RV was equipped with five flat screen T.V.’S, a bathroom, 3 beds, a full kitchen, and two couches.   And how could I forget the full bar.   It took us about an hour to finally reach our destination.   We parked next to other RV’S and made friends very fast.   We hung out around the RV for a couple of hours until it was time to go into the game.   My buddy Tyler had told me that he had our tickets in his pocket, so obviously I trusted that they would still be there.   All ten of us walked to the stadium and were ready to go in.   When we got to the gate I asked Tyler if he had our tickets and when he reached into his pocket they weren’t there.   He had lost them at some point in the day.   So as we watched our other friends enter the stadium we had to figure out a way in.   Since all of our friends had club level seats we knew we had to find a scalper with club level seats for sale.   We spent about 30 minutes looking for club level tickets but we had no luck.   Unfortunately all we could find were 30 dollar upper level seats.   So we bought them off of what seemed to be a trustworthy scalper.

The tickets we had got us into the stadium.   When we arrived at our seats we noticed that there were two people sitting in them.   I asked the people to show me their tickets and so they did.   When I looked at their tickets I was in shock.   Our tickets and their tickets were exactly the same.   We had bought counterfeit tickets.   After much dispute we finally went to customer service where many of the employees were reluctant to give us different seats.   Finally, they gave us two more tickets right around the previous seats.   When we got to those seats there was a giant pole in front of them.   After contemplation I decided it wouldn’t hurt to go back and ask for different seats.   When we went back to customer service a nice lady reached into a manila envelope and pulled out two tickets and said, “I hope these tickets work out better than the last ones”.   To my amazement when I looked down I noticed that she had given us club level seats.

We rode the escalator all the way to the club level and met up with our friends after a huge ordeal.   When we got to the club level we were greeted with many beverages.   Even though Virginia Tech lost we still managed to salvage a great time out of the whole situation.   On our walk back to the RV Tyler had to stop at the Porto potty because he had one too many beverages.   As I was waiting outside I noticed on the ground near a trash can what seemed to be a very familiar envelope.   When I opened the envelope I saw our two club level seats.   I told Tyler and he said they must have fallen out when he threw a can away.

ASHBURN, Va – The Briar Woods Falcons were fresh off a win and ready for action.   Then they ran into the Potomac Falls Panthers.

Luke Mihailovich had 19 points and led the Panthers to an 86-61 win.

Zach Curran hit two 3-pointers and supplied the Panthers with 13 points.

Myles Tate led the Falcons with 25 points.   The Falcons were able to hold on to an 11 point deficit at half-time.   But after coming out of the locker room flat they found themselves trying to catch-up the rest of the game.   The surging Panthers never panicked and showed poise by draining basket after basket.

“They do not miss shots.” Briar Woods head coach Michael Benson said.   “They do not make a lot of mistakes.”

Corey Faciane finished the game with a total of 12 points, all of which were 3-pointers.   Yves Kouame also tried to fend off the panthers by providing the Falcons with two 3-pointers and 12 points.

“Potomac Falls is just a very very good team right now.   They’re playing at the top of their game.   We ran into a train tonight.   They are a very smart experienced team.”   Head coach Michael Benson said.   “Teams get better during the season and individuals get better in the off-season.”

This game sends the Briar Woods Boys Basketball team to the off-season.

Last Wednesday was my girlfriend’s birthday. So of course I l told her we could do whatever she wanted to do all day. Then she hit me with all the requests.

She wanted to go shopping, eat at a nice restaurant, and see a movie. So I thought no big deal, all of those things don’t sound that bad. After shopping for about an hour at the mall she wanted to go to a different store. The store was a thrift store. I hadn’t been to one since I was young so I was a little nervous.

When we got to the thrift store I was impressed by its enormous size. I had never seen a thrift store like this one. After entering the front doors I noticed that I was a little out of place. The store wasn’t as clean as I would have liked but I decided to give it a chance.

After about an hour I became extremely bored. My girlfriend was completely entranced in shopping so I decided to wonder myself. After looking at what seemed to be a bunch of useless stuff I found a bin of sporting equipment. The bin had been pushed under a collection of blankets and didn’t look as if anyone had looked through it in a while. I noticed a basketball at the bottom of the bin so I decided to get it out. Just about two weeks prior to this I was at a local park and I left my basketball behind and when I went back it wasn’t there.

I started pulling some of the equipment out and placing it on the floor beside me. As I got deeper in the bin the equipment seemed to be getting older. I noticed a wood golf club, a wooden baseball bat and a rugby ball. After removing a Hockey mask from the bin I noticed a white panel football. When I examined the football closer I noticed that there were two signatures on it. The first signature was a printed on signature from the NFL’s former commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The second was a real signature that was done in black marker. To my surprise it was a Darrell Green autograph.

The price tag on the football was two dollars and 93 cents. So, I decided to buy it. I am unsure of its true value but I intend to find it. Even if the football isn’t worth more than a couple of bucks a Darrel Green autographed football deserves more than to be smashed in a bin at a thrift store.

Darrell Green is a Washington Redskins legend.

The real question here is should Cam Newton play for the Washington Redskins next season. Given his past I don’t feel that the Redskins should add him to the roster.

However, I do know that the kid is talented. After taking Binn College in Texas to a national championship, he turns around and takes Auburn to a National Championship. One has to ask if he can be stopped. The NFL is going to be a huge jump for him but with his current resume I have a hard time saying he isn’t going to be a great NFL player. He has all the physical attributes that a good Quarterback in the NFL needs. He is large in stature and has incredible speed. The only down side to his physical attributes is his throwing arm. Some NFL coaches believe he doesn’t have the accuracy that an NFL player must possess. I agree with them. He struggled at the NFL combine in accuracy and at times he seemed frustrated with himself. A quality we have yet to see from Cam.

Despite all the negative things about his accuracy that have been said I have to look at all the good things because there are so many. The greatest attribute Cam possesses is the ability to win at any measure. He brings swagger to a team. He brings hope and belief to a team. That is something I believe the Redskins desperately need right now.

After the 2009 NFL season the Redskins had a record of 4-12. After many changes within the organization fans were supposed to buy into a changed culture. However, what fans were handed with was a week to week struggle. The Redskins finished the 2010 NFL season with a record of 6-10. There was little improvement from last year but not enough to make anyone believe that big things are ahead for the Redskins.

If Cam Newton came to Washington I believe he will be a great football player. He has what it takes to win. He understands that over every aspect of the game the most important one is winning. This attribute seems to have been lost here in Washington. Redskin’s players seem to want to pine over all the mistakes that have been made.

Another important thing that must not be overlooked is the position. Cam Newton is a quarterback. The Redskins just so happen to need a quarterback after chewing up Donovan McNabb and spitting him out. After seeing what Rex Grossman can still do I believe we should allow him to start the season and teach Cam the offense? If Rex starts to fall short of expectations than we can make a switch and see what Cam has.