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People In Sports

Taliban on two!  Ready! Set! Mud hut-hut!

September 13, 2013

Cape football in Afghanistan - Ken Hardy is a volunteer statistician for the Cape football team. But he wasn’t at the Milford game, so where were my stats? I hope coaches don’t think I’m recording them, because I’m trying to take photos while watching a game to capture its essence and flow while making short trips to the fence to work the alumni crowd. Ken Hardy delivered the stats from the game, thanks to a digital program now used by football coaches worldwide and a few Taliban hackers called HUDL. Hardy is in Afghanistan with the National Guard - it's classified, don’t tell anyone - but he had his Panasonic Tough Book as he himself huddles at the entrance of some craggy cave breaking down Cape football games. Game ball for Ken Hardy on his return. I have lots of them, all dark brown, dirty and fat with sports hernias.

Deshon James - Ran into the former Cape running back from the glory days of the late '90s while leaving the Milford game. There was incredible talent during that run, which saw Cape make a state tournament appearance in two consecutive seasons. Backs like Deshon James, Tim Cannon, Carl Floyd, Tykee Perry, Malik Lopez, O.J. Wilson, Ricky Thompson, Nick Shaffer and quarterbacks Theron Pavlik and Johnny Howard. Three UD 2003 national champions - Mark Moore, Matt Graviet and Trip Delcampo - along with Tommy Sheehan, Larry Oliver, Haywood Burton, Tim Widdoes, Matt Hall, Shane Massey and Alex Hense were on those teams. Deshon said, ”I think I had the record for Athlete of the Week."  I asked him how many and he did not hesitate to answer: "Seven!”

Jelly Bean - The late Tim Bailey of Cape circa 1981 was a sprinter on my track teams, and his Coolspring Connection buddies called him Jelly Bean because of his round head. One Wednesday morning after Tim had dropped the baton on the third leg of the 4-by-100-meter at Seaford, Peter Cox showed up in my classroom doorway. “Fredman, you can’t let Jelly Bean run the curve next to a fence. His head is too big, Coach. You know he’s going to hit that fence. Just lead him off on the straightaway. He gets out of the blocks and he’s fast, but no more curves.” Solomon Cox, Peter's son, ran in the cross country meet for Cape at Central last Wednesday. Solomon knows I‘m like one of his great uncles. And Tim Bailey, son of Jelly Bean, now a senior, ran for Sussex Central. Young Tim introduced himself to me five years ago at a middle school meet and floored me when he said, ”I wish you were my coach.” Now that is respect for tradition.

Snippets - The Sussex County Dart League is looking for team players for the 2013-14 season. Matches are at local venues - called bars where I come from - on Tuesday nights October through April. Contact Charlie Gouert at 302-381-2833 or cgouert@comcast.net. You can find football on Thursdays through Mondays, so make Tuesday darts day. That leaves Wednesday as a day of rest. Talk to “The Wife” about it or encourage her to join while you stay home reorganizing the garage playroom. And never say “The Wife”; that was a joke.

Sunday, Sept. 22 at Baywood Greens, it's not the dreaded Member Member Member Member Best Ball Foursome Shotgun Start Sponsor a Cart Bob Hope Pants Classic, because Baywood Greens is public. How about a Delaware Strongest Man and Teen Nationals from 11 a.m until 5 p.m.? These are all amateurs doing axle press, sandbag carry, reps on tire flips, keg toss and Atlas stone over bar.  Admission is $5. The event will be held in the wedding garden. The event will crown Delaware’s Strongest Man and National Teenage Strongest Man. Contact Mark Coty at Baywood at 302-947-9225, Ext.100 or Coty@baywoodgreens.com.

The 18th Annual Dewey Beach Sprint Triathlon is Saturday, Sept. 14, with Tower Road State Park oceanside as the staging area. The event is a half-mile ocean swim, 15-mile bike and 3.5-mile run. This is not an Ironman, more a Magnesium Man competition. Entry - too late, parking - too funny.

I’m in Philly for home opener Sunday where I expect the Eagles to score six points on two first-half field goals. Best part of the Monday night game was watching the Eagles offense beat themselves up, like it was the first and last game of the season. Actually the best part was the bedazzling of Mike Shanahan, who thought he was the genius, not Chip Kelly. Go on now, git!

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