Raks New England Sports Blog

Some good video and links for you….just click away….

• Jimmy Kimmel aka Miguel Tejada on his wieght issues (video)

• Bill Bilichek and Josh McDaniels could use this play (video)
• Tribute to the Beer GUY (article and videos)

http://www.postgazette.com/pg/08125/878966-85.stm

This story is a great read about a teenager with cancer who has a huge heart, a mature mind and a love for sports. Its a heart touching story and a must read. Exert:

The 18-year-old kid dying of cancer gets his wish, a chance to swing a bat maybe one last time in a real baseball game.

He hasn’t played in a few years, but he’s called on to pinch-hit. His eyes light up at the first pitch and he puts all of his 5-foot-5, 93-pound frame into one mighty swing, making contact and sending a line drive into right field for a single — if he can reach first base. The cancer he’s been battling for almost two years has spread to his pelvis, making running nearly impossible.

The kid worries about falling as he hustles down the first-base line. When he gets to the base, he lets out with a yell. “I did it! I did it!”

His high school coach set up a fund raiser walk for him so he could go on one last vaccation with his family. They raised enough and he plans on going a cruise in JUne.

After the walk, John addressed the crowd.

“He spoke from his heart,” Mr. Wetzel, the coach, said. “He said, ‘I’ve got two options. I know I’m going to die, so I can either sit at home and feel sorry, or I could spread my message to everybody to live life to the fullest and help those in need.’ After hearing that, I don’t know if there were many people not crying.”

On figuring out he had cancer and talking with his dad

“I sit up with him at night until 1 or 2 in the morning,” Scott Challis said. “He’ll tell me, ‘Dad, when I’m gone, you have to do this or that. You have to watch your weight.’ He’s worried about my weight. He tells me I have to take care of mom.

“When the doctors told him a few weeks ago about how the cancer was winning, he had a lot of questions about what it was going to be like and about being comfortable. Later on, he broke down with me and you know what he did? He apologized. He was upset because he felt like he was letting everyone down who had been praying for him.”

The role of sports in his life

The cancer forced him to stop playing football as a junior.

“But I will never forget,” his father said, “when he first got sick he told me, ‘Dad, I have to dress for a football game one more time.’ “

He got his wish in the final game of his senior season, against Hickory. Coaches let him kick off once. He was supposed to kick and immediately run off the field to avoid danger. Instead, he stayed on the field and got a little excited when the kick returner started heading his way before being tackled.

Later in the game, the coaches put him in for two plays at receiver. Mr. Wetzel and others who saw the game proudly tell how, on one play, John tried to block a defender, fell down, but got up and pushed another defender………….

Baseball

 John attended the game, but had an IV line in his arm for a treatment he was getting. He took out the IV line and asked Mr. Wetzel if he could pinch-hit again.

“Unbelievable. He told me the doctor said he could take it out for up to seven hours,” Mr. Wetzel said. “He told me he just wanted to be a normal kid one more time.”

So Mr. Wetzel let him pinch-hit. This time he struck out.

Impact on his coach

They have a unique coach-player relationship. Mr. Wetzel invited John to be part of the team a year ago and John calls the coach one of his best friends. They talk every day, at least on a cell phone, and go to lunch together once a week.

“The kid has changed my life,” Mr. Wetzel said. “I cry for him just about every day. I’m 32 and I’m getting married in September. You know what he told me the other day? He told me to save him a seat in the front row of the church, because even if he’s not there, he’ll be there in spirit.

Great read, really touching showing that there is more to life than sports. A role model and someone who know about what life is reallly about.

4:23  MCklevin and Ryan Clady go off the board

428 Panthers select Johthan Stewart.

Surprising move, i thought they would go OT.

Bears are up they will go Lineman, Williams OT vandy

 4:37 Chris williams to the Bears

•       Why is Albert Falling so much?
• Lions select another WR…..hahah
• Prediction Lions take Otah OT Pitt
• Steve Young pisses me off

442 Lions trade with Chiefs

• Cheifs will take Albert

444 Chiefs Select Brandon Albert

•  Chiefs get dorsey and Albert solid draft by them- Maybe the top rated player and top 10 rated player

4:57 Lions take Boston College Godser Cherilus

• Two BC players in the first 17 picks not bad, not bad

5:00 Raves trade up with the Texans

• They will take a QB prob Joe Flacco with this pick

5:02 Ravens select QB Joe Flacco Deleware

 Flacco or Falco?

 5:22  Bucs select Talib Kalib Rapper of Black Star

• Solid player who love the movie cheech and chong

5:38  Cowboys select Felix Jones

• Perfect fit for Cowboys, excellent one two punch for the boys

5 :51 Titan select Johnson

• Wow I think that Vince NEEDS a productive WR and with all them being on the board and passing on ALL of them stupid stupid move

6:26 THE SUCKS GET DUSTIN KELLER

3:51 The Saints select Sedrick Ellis

355- Jax and the Raven trade picks

* By the way I exastic that the Pats made a trade- look for Rivers, Mayo, or a CB from thier pick

New details - Pats get 10th pick and 3rd rounder and give up 7th pick and 5th rounder. Solid move because there was no glarring player they wanted at 7

Predicton for the Jax - Dereck Harvey DE FLa

4:00 The Jags select  Derek Harvey

Speed rusher who should help the Jags pass rush immediatly. 

Kiper says its a big reach- inconsistant.

Kipper says he is a complete player.

Im betting the Jags gave up alot to move that far up the draft

Pats are up in two picks!

Bengals wil select Rivers, WTF the guy who i wanted

4:06 The Bengals select Kieth Rivers USC OLB

The guy who i wanted the Pats to pick.

I dont know which way the Pats will go, Brendan Albert or DRC CB

Ravens got 26th pick, two 3rd rounders and 1 fourth pick

Prediction- Albert OG

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS THE PATS HAVE MADE A TRADE TO THE SAINTS!

10th Pick to the Pats and more to come…

Pats get saints 1oth pick and 3rd rounder

Saints get 7th pick and 5th rounder

3;00- With the Number One Pick of the 2008 NFL Draft The Miami Dolphins select…..

          Jake Long OT- Michigan

The St. Louis Rams are now on the clock….

My prediction for the Rams- Chris Long DE Virgina

3:12  With the second pick in the NFL Draft the Rams select…

Chris Long- DE Virgina

It would have been nice to see him slip or the Pats to move up for him.  These next two picks will be interesting to see how the dominos fall and if any one want to trade with the Pats

The Falcons are now on the Clock, My prediction- Matty ICE Ryan BC

* Matt Ryan is on the Phone smiling so it looks like hell be a Falcon

3:18-  With the third pick the Falcons select Matt Ryan out of Boston College

Matt, you will be missed at BC next year and thank you for your four years there!

The Oakland Raiders are now on the clock…. Prediction- Darren McFadden

Again this pick will have a big effect on what the Pats do, Mike Riess from the Globe reports:

this selection figures to have a trickle-down effect on the Patriots at No. 7.

Assuming there is no trade, the Raiders are likely choosing between three options: RB Darren McFadden, DE/OLB Vernon Gholston and DT Glenn Dorsey.

The Raiders have Justin Fargas, LaMont Jordan, Dominic Rhodes and Michael Bush at running back, so there is no major need for McFadden.

The team also invested heavily in DT Tommy Kelly in free agency, and while they’d surely find a spot for Dorsey, it’s not a major need either.

Gholston would be the type of hybrid DE/OLB that would seem to fit well in the Raiders’ 3-4 scheme, and his position appears to be the greater need than RB or DT.

Of the group, McFadden appears to be the key for the Patriots.

If he slips past Oakland, trade action for picks 5, 6 and 7 would seemingly pick up.

3:26  With the fourth Pick DA RAIIIIIDERS select Darren McFadden

This hurts the trade value for the Pats. But does keep him away from the Jets so Im happy. I believe that McFadden will be  A BEAST in the NFL. He wont only be a top NFL draft choice but also top fantasy football choice.

Chiefs are now on the clock…

Prediction- Glenn Dorsey

334-  The Chiefs select Glenn Dorsey DT LSU

The Saints offered the Chiefs a trade of 2 1st rounders and 1 second rounder but declined, stupid move in my opionion!

The J_E_T_S Suck SUCK SUCK are now on the Clock,

My prediction- Vernon Gholsten

The Sucks fans are chanting we want Gholston!

Itll be intresting to see what happens if the Pats will trade or pick

Still on the Board: Gholsten, Breden Albert, Sederick Ellis, Keith Rivers

343 The SUCKS select Vernon Gholsten

Solid pick for the Pats

The Pats are now on the Clock Baby!!!

Still Available:

OG/OT Branden Albert
DL Sedrick Ellis
OLB Keith Rivers
CB Leodis McKelvin

I HOPE THE PATS can get a trade from the Bengals or Saints for them to move up to get Ellis

I am not a big hockey fan but I always try to catch the Frozen four especially when BC is in it. After losing the past two championship games BC came up big over underdog Fighting Irish.  After a scoreless 1st period BC scored two fast goals to go up 2-0 and led 3-1 into the third period. A Norte Dame goal which looked like it was going to cut the lead to 3-2 was dissallowed. BC then added an insurance goal to FLY to a 4-1 win. College Hockey > Pro Hockey

BC Wins Frozen Four

Pending a physical and re working of Chads contract the Pats and Bengals have agreed to a trade. The trade consists of Chad Johnson and a 6th rd pick for The Pats 1st rd -7th pick and Jabar Gaffney.

This is what I wanted from the start, I m happy to be a Patriot. I can not wait to work with Coach Billicheck, Tom Brady and the rest of that offense. I want to win and I know this organzation is all about winning.

APRIL FOOLS! I didnt think you would fall for it either, this is the best I could come up with.

Rajon Rando breaking Steve Nash’s ankles…..as the celts go on to crush the suns.

http://www.redlasso.com/ClipPlayer.aspx?id=bd92e79f-cfb2-479a-a9d3-6553b0214515

Today is the day where everyone wants to be Irish and get drunk.

My grandmother is straight from Ireland and still has family over there, one being her brother Micheal - whom when he came to visit,  taught me how real Irishmen do it: drink numerous pints of Guinness (not my favorite beer) all this being done before Noon.

Another memory that goes along with St Pattys for me, is when i was ages 10-13, going with my best friends parents, to a local irish pub, packed to the brim. Drunk irish men singing along to the group Murphy’s Law (who are now back in Ireland).  Theres nothing like drunk people singing along to good irish music. Now whenever I hear those few songs that i can remember, i find my self tapping my feet, clapping my hands and reaching for a “pint”.

Ill leave you with three of my fav’s and maybe they motivate you to go to your favorite pub and grab some green beer:

Also as the group Murphy’s Law also ended their show : ” May the wind at your back…….never be your own!”

Tim Finnegans Wake- (where the drunk Irish people have to clap during the chorus and stop right when its ended)

Whiskey in the Jar

 Leaving of Liverpool: