Ricky Santos and Chip Kelly lit it up at Delaware Stadium in 2004

Hey Ricky! “Oh Ricky, you’re so fine, you’re so fine, you blow my mind, Hey Ricky, hey Ricky. ” – Weird Al Yankovic. New Hampshire redshirt freshman quarterback Ricky Santos, third on the depth chart, came off the bench in the opening game at Delaware in 2004 – Mark Moore and Trip DelCampo were on that team. Santos hit 10 of 11 passes for 146 yards, including a 44-yard post corner route to David Ball in the fourth quarter for a 24-21 New Hampshire victory. Chip Kelly was the offensive coordinator for New Hampshire. “Tonight was the first pass Santos ever threw in a college football game,” said head coach Sean McDonnell. Santos started all four years and went on to win the Walter Payton Award. His No. 2 has been retired. He is currently the interim head coach at New Hampshire. I came upon the photo of Kelly and Santos while searching a digital storage device. 

Second checker - Dan Cook and I spent a decade covering three pro football teams and the University of Delaware. I was the lead writer and second camera. I always worked the visiting team sidelines at Delaware just to see how visiting teams managed the game. Delaware was playing in front of a packed stadium during those years; it was just a perfect venue for a 1AA football game. Delaware fans on the visitors side were vociferously rude; they just dogged the visiting team, which made the players smile. The electric enthusiasm for in-person Delaware football has dimmed like an eco-friendly lightbulb.  

Dogfish Dash - I posted a Facebook photo of Darby Dog sleeping on a chair when he was a juvenile doodle 14 years ago. Above him I posted a birthday card photo of Cape Superintendent Bob Fulton – Vanilla Ice – completing the Dogfish Dash a few years ago. Darby doubled down Bob with “Likes,” but then Bob came biting back to take the lead. Bob began his career at Cape as head coach of the boys’ ninth-grade basketball team at the Lewes annex. Players on that team were Thurman White, Donnell Custis, John Skoglund, Avory Harmon, Lamar Thompson, Brett Melson, Melvin Harmon, Donni Dukes, Charlie Thomas, Taiwan Savage and Bruce Pitts. Bob and Darby raced to a dead heat in popularity after two days, which is great news for Bob, but it shows some slippage for Darby Dog.   

Slightly to totally - The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association discussed scenarios for fall sports at its July 23 meeting, but a decision was delayed with continued discussion to occur at the Aug. 13 meeting. Options considered were to leave all sports in the current season, switch fall and spring sport seasons, and, last, delay all sports and have condensed seasons. Young athletes have been romping and football stomping for the last month with open-field workouts and actual tournaments being played in lacrosse, soccer, field hockey and AAU basketball. A sudden shutdown like what occurred in March, although it seems unnatural, is also as likely as unlikely. The governor's office, Division of Public Health and Department of Education will caucus and contribute to any final decision.  

You Better You Better You Best - People who have already snagged a pandemic puppy are asking me sports questions ranging from Cape’s greatest athletes from each decade to all-time top 22 football players on offense and defense to the top 10 all-time best athletes male and female. I heard from Hertford Gibbs, Class of 1979, who was on a canal boat ride with Billy Lorah, Lineman for Life, Class of 1979. Hertford is making anyone’s top 10 list, but he suggested that Cape’s all-time best was Charles Turner, not because of the sports he played – state wrestling champion and 6-foot-11 high jumper in track – but his excellence in the sports he didn’t play,  like football, basketball and baseball. Charles had that reputation on the street and in the halls during an era when Cape looked like an NFL training camp. Hertford, Charles and Jim Jim Robinson hung out together during that era. If you could corral those three, you were doing something. 

Snippets - Speaking of professional sports, when the hype machine gets turned off, it’s hard to turn it back on. Fan interest and loyalties carry the game. If you lose that, it all just looks like a Friday morning gym class. The stretch of hot weather has been a sizzling siege of sameness with annoying blue skies and cumulus clouds and little wind. Personally, I’m looking forward to storms and heavy surf, and wondering what happens to the spiked balls of the coronavirus when they travel 100 miles per hour and crash into a tree. Coach Ellis Gaulden of Cape is the man to see for agility, strength and speed training. The problem is too many people already know that. Go on now, git!