July 2009 Archives

The final, heart-stopping play of Super Bowl XXXIV has its own Wikipedia page.

But that's not the play that comes to my mind first when I think back to that game, and the efforts of Titans quarterback Steve McNair, who was found shot to death today in Nashville.

I was covering that game, on Jan. 30, 2000, for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal, sitting with the rest of the less-important media in the upper level of the Georgia Dome, so high I could have probably reached up and touched the roof.

The play I'll always remember is the next-to-last play of that Super Bowl. Not the last one.

It was classic McNair, avoiding multiple tacklers and a near sack, spinning and scrambling -- impossbily staying on his feet far behind the line of scrimmage -- and ultimately finding Kevin Dyson for a 16-yard gain to the Rams' 10-yard line with six seconds remaining. Without that effort by McNair, there almost certainly is no Famous Last Play.

McNair, in his prime, was one of only a small handful of NFL quarterbacks in history who could have pulled off that next-to-last play, given the pressure of the situation.

That was my jaw-dropping moment from Super Bowl XXXIV.

That's my Steve McNair memory.

Elephants + hot dogs = cross-species throwdown.

To get you pumped for the Fourth of July and Saturday's Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, here's a little gem of a contest.

The animal contestants: 3 Asian elephants -- Bunny, Susie and Minnie -- all in their 40s

Weight: 9 tons

The human contestants: The corned beef hash world champion, the cranberry sauce world champion and a blueberry pie eater.

Weight: 500 pounds

Stat of the day: 505-143: Hot dogs the elephants ate in 6 minutes compared to the humans.

Fast fact: The elephants even paused to eat fresh fruit, which did not count toward scoring.

The slumping Philadelphia Phillies got a lift from an unlikely source on Friday night -- former Baltimore Oriole Rodrigo Lopez.

Lopez pitched 6.1 innings and allowed just two runs in the Phillies' 7-2 win over the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park.

Lopez was one of baseball's best stories in 2002, when he burst onto the scene with the Baltimore Orioles and went 15-9 with a 3.57 ERA.

Dan Connolly, who covered the Orioles that year for the York Daily Record, wrote the following for the June 8, 2002, edition:

BALTIMORE -- Rodrigo Lopez dreamed of one day pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers like his childhood hero and fellow Mexican, Fernando Valenzuela.

He never was given the chance. He signed with the Orioles as a minor-league free agent when no other team, including the Dodgers, showed interest.

On Friday, Lopez started against L.A. and came within one out of capturing his first complete-game shutout. Instead, he settled for a 4-2, interleague victory and a standing ovation from an energized Camden Yards crowd of 33,624.

 "The feeling is pretty good," said Lopez, a native of Tlalnepantla, Mexico. "I've been a Dodgers' fans since I was a kid. (The win) means a lot to me."

Within six months, the 26-year-old right-hander has gone from the Culiacan Tomato Growers of the Mexican Winter League to being arguably the Orioles' staff ace. Lopez (6-1) is second in the American League with a sparkling 2.51 ERA and is making a claim to become the Orioles' representative to the American League All-Star team.

"He's incredible," Melvin Mora said of Lopez. "This guy can just pitch. He throws the ball and uses his brain.... That's pretty good."

Lopez mixed his nasty slider with a 93-mph fastball against a team that had only one hitter in the lineup - Brian Jordan - that had ever faced him before.

The fairy tale didn't continue forever for Lopez, though.

He struggled in 2003, posted 14 and 15 wins in 2004 and 2005, respectively, for the Orioles (while seeing his ERA rise). And then he fell off the cliff in 2006, losing 18 games and posting a 5.90 ERA.

He was quietly dealt to the Colorado Rockies in the winter following that season. Lopez made 14 unremarkable starts for the Rockies in 2007 and then didn't pitch again in the majors until tonight. He made three minor-league starts for the Atlanta Braves in 2008 and started this season in the Phillies' Triple-A rotation at Lehigh Valley.

Now, with the World Champion Phillies struggling with injuries and inconsistency in their starting rotation, the 33-year-old Mexican native might just have a chance to stick in Philadelphia for awhile.

Friday was a promising first step.

Ok, while looking for some college spotlight information to post here, I thought hey let's look at Bucknell because I know the YAIAA has a few alumni playing sports there.

So, I did that, but something caught my eye and that was the release of the various NCAA Division I Patriot League all-academic teams.

I liked that even better and started my write up until I looked around and found nine former YAIAA student-athletes that made the list.

Considering the fact the Patriot League boasts academic schools like Bucknell, Colgate, Lehigh, Lafayette, Holy Cross and the Army Academy, garnering such status is a well-deserved honor that doesn't come without extreme efforts.

So, in no particular order is the athlete (high school), college (class when award given), sport, GPA, major:

Stephanie Evans (Central York), Bucknell (junior), track, 3.95, chemical engineering.

Ashley Beans (Hanover), Bucknell (senior), softball, 3.66, economics.

Katie McDonald (West York), Bucknell (senior), softball, 3.50 psychology.

Whitney Brown (York Suburban), Bucknell (junior), swimming, 3.83 psychology/economics.

Jake Schroeder (York Suburban), Bucknell (sophomore), track, 3.58, economics/German.

Michael Simmons (South Western), Army (senior), 3.73, track, mechanical engineering.

Robert Blum (South Western), Lafayette (senior), track, 3.35, mechanical engineering.

Zach McClain (Dallastown), Army (senior), swimming-diving, 3.27, civil engineering.

Katherine Johnescu (York Suburban), Colgate (freshman), rowing, 3.48, undeclared.

Solid careers on the field and outstanding performance where it is most important.

Back in June, Dallastown grad Jamie Maloney received a terrific recognition when she was awarded the inaugural women's PSAC Sportsmanship Award.

The award is given to a female and male athlete who exemplifies the spirit of sportsmanship and has demonstrated the values of respect and integrity through a specific action.

Maloney, who both swims and runs track at Clarion University, earned her acknowledgment at the PSAC swimming championships when she handed her goggles to a West Chester swimmer, who had broken hers just prior to a heat race.

The thing is, West Chester is typically Clarion's biggest rival during the PSAC season and the two schools had battled for many a conference dual-meet championship, yet Maloney didn't hesitate to help out and later would say, "It was no big deal."

She has also been involved with many community activities during her three years at the school. I recall speaking with Jamie several times while she was at Dallastown, the last of which came during the YAIAA track championships during her senior year with the Wildcats.

 Seeing this story doesn't surprise me one bit. Way to go, Jamie.