Instagramps - I met Cape senior two-sport athlete Lex Wescott for the first time Sept. 13 before football practice. I asked him, “Do you know who I am?” and he said, “Yea, you're Dave.” No one calls me Dave, so I said, “Better known as Fredman.” Lex is instantly likable. We talked about his ejection from the Red Lion game for allegedly throwing a punch. After a video review, the ejection was overturned (time lost not retrievable), but a subsequent one-game suspension was lifted. Lex was vindicated and will be in the game Friday night against Delcastle. I told him the ejection was a referendum on his character as coaches and teachers all spoke highly of Lex. “He [Jah Rogers] came at me with a possible stalk block. We rolled on the ground and I was just trying to get away. When I got ejected, we were winning 21-0 and he had one pass reception for a short gain.” Rogers finished the game with 127 yards and a touchdown of 45 yards. By the way, no coaches or players criticized the official who made a call based on what he thought he saw.   

Zach is back - Zach Simpler spent four years at the University of Delaware, and now he is back at Cape helping coach Jason Feather, the designated equipment and video guy. I was there by happenstance on Zach's first day. Jason and coach Mike Frederick had never met Zach Simpler. “You're just going to love him,” I said. “I gave him an autographed Cape Gazette ball cap when he was in eighth grade, and I’ve been his buddy ever since.” Good things happen around school sports teams. Take it from Dave. 

Cape versus Cougars - “All My Cougars Are on Walkers” – a country song I’m working on. The Delcastle football Cougars are at Cape Friday, Sept. 15 for a 7 p.m. football game. Delcastle lost at Sussex Tech last week 36-25. Delcastle is deceptively dangerous with 13 coaches, and they did put up 25 in an opening-night loss. The Cougars were 0-10 in 2022. 

Club sports - The University of Delaware has 38 club team sports, which can be found at rec.bluehens.com. Bryan Garcia, a former Cape wrestler and 2021 Cape graduate, is treasurer of the club wrestling team. How about bass fishing, fencing, figure skating, synchronized skating, triathlon, trap and skeet and ultimate disc teams? Much was made of Hope Hicks, former White House communications director, being captain of the SMU lacrosse team while in college. I found that pretty close to being interesting, so I searched it out and discovered the Mustangs were a club-level sport, which is cool, but it was just never mentioned. 

Snippets - LT Messick is listed as a wide receiver on the Misericordia football roster. The Cougars are 0-2 on the season, having lost to Alfred State 24-14 and King’s College 42-10. Messick saw action in both games. The Cougars will host Alvernia University Saturday, Sept. 23. Alvernia is coached by Steve Azzanesi and are currently 0-2, having lost to Ursinus College 38-6 and Eastern University 30-23. Jaydon Mifflin (Sussex Tech) is a 6-foot-2, 260-pound sophomore offensive lineman for the Delaware State Hornets. Delmar beat Indian River in field hockey 8-1. Jordan Hollamon had four goals, giving her 17 over the first four games. Jordan also had three assists in the game. Mariner and Beacon combined field hockey rosters total 70 players. The Penn State Lehigh Valley volleyball team beat host Penn State Schuylkill 3-1 behind Tatum Friend’s 13 kills. Tatum, a freshman, is a former Cape player. Rileigh Wilson (Cape) had 11 kills as Stockton University defeated Drew 3-0 in volleyball. I’m now officially local. I haven't been in the ocean all summer and I own two four-wheel vehicles that have never been on the beach. The slow-sinking late-season demise of the Phillies is killing me. I've tried not to watch them, but I always know the score. Playing meaningful games at home and trying to win home field in the playoffs and losing them. It’s pretty obvious home field advantage is a myth for some teams. The MLB website gives the Phillies a 90% chance of making the playoffs. I saw a number on Draftkings Sportsbook of -2500 to make the playoffs, and I have no idea what that means. Go on now, git!