Jaguars, Tigers, And Panthers (Oh … My?)
August 28, 2021 at 12:26 a.m.
Jaguars, Tigers, And Panthers (Oh … My?)
By Chip Davenport-
Readers, let’s walk and talk.
I watched Urban Meyer and his Jacksonville Jaguars struggle against the New Orleans Saints’ backups Monday night. Trevor Lawrence has been named the starter for week one. Thank Heaven the Jags are facing one of the other five terrible teams in the NFL this year: the Houston Texans.
Meyer’s Jaguars will win a handful of games this year because he gets to play Houston twice, and the Jags will play the three other AFC last-place teams along with two last-place teams from the NFC due to the scheduling patterns of the NFL. I’m eager to see if he has a nose for talent in the draft, and if he can work with his general manager to pick up draft picks via trades in the skillful approach Jimmy Johnson used in his days with the Dallas Cowboys.
Fun fact: Urban Meyer was part of my floor/town in Buckeye Boys’ State. He has a distinct German Catholic name, and his face is pretty recognizable, so there is no mistaken identity. It has changed very little over the years. He wasn’t a big talker then, and the only things I remember? He was a highly sought-after pro baseball prospect, and he would remind some of us - hanging around our “town” offices too long – to get to the gym or the pool on the Bowling Green campus.
I wonder if Meyer had any idea he’d turn that program around at the turn of the 21st century, let alone lead The Ohio State University football team to a national championship. My son, Parker, and I sit near the tunnel when we attend Ohio State football games. He asked me what Meyer would say if I shouted down to him that we were on the same floor/town at Boys’ State. I told him he’d probably shout, “SECURITY.”
*****
If you’re reading this before 9 a.m. Saturday, take time to tune into Tiger Talk with Roger Grossman. This show, on 99.7 FM and 1480 AM, covers scores around the area at the start, then move to a primary focus on interviews with coaches, guest senior athletes “in-season”, and a recap of the week’s action in Tiger athletics, and the upcoming week’s schedule of each Warsaw team.
Roger pointed out in last week’s Tiger Talk how the athletes being interviewed each year arrive to the show prepared with well-defined, and diverse post-graduation plans.
I believe these enjoyable athlete interviews we are hearing stem from two things: the on-demand availability of the Tiger Talk replays the athletes can now enjoy and get a feel for how their friends and teammates sound once they’re finished with Saturday practices or ballgames, and the decreased stigma of post-graduation plans involving apprenticeship in the trades, and in entry-level STEM opportunities.
My son had his 4½ minutes of fame on Tiger Talk two seasons ago. I was at a rugby test featuring my cousin’s spirited and tough-as-nails daughter, so I caught the replay. I was proud of Parker because he didn’t have any “ummm” or “uhhh” verbal pauses. He spoke with a halted cadence, and as usual, he economized his words. I was still impressed Grossman was able to keep him talking for a good bit. I wish Parker would have told the radio and podcast audiences his little-known fact was he collected nutcrackers. I believe he would have pleasantly surprised his host. He talked about his mountain bike instead, and that surprised Grossman, too. Current guests seem to surprise listeners on Tiger talk with their interests and family facts.
*****
Northern Lakes Conference member, NorthWood, was facing a cancellation of this week’s football game versus perennial 4A football power East Noble, who suspended all athletic activities through Aug. 31 due to COVID. The Black Crush from Nappanee found an opponent earlier this week when Logansport had the same issue with a canceled gridiron clash against Northwestern.
These COVID woes hit rather close to home with our friends in northern Wabash County, the Manchester Squires, who had to cancel their game against Bluffton when nearly an entire position group was affected by COVID protocols. Bluffton, in the meantime, quickly picked up a game against Hamilton Heights. Athletic offices and coaching staffs around the states are demonstrating how nimble they are in this circumstance when their teams are fortunate enough to stay safe and healthy.
The Delta variant, the vaccination rates continuing at unsatisfactory levels, and some other relaxed approaches toward otherwise effective preventive practices have already become a recipe for disaster two weeks into most school districts’ 2021-2022 school year.
Readers, let’s walk and talk.
I watched Urban Meyer and his Jacksonville Jaguars struggle against the New Orleans Saints’ backups Monday night. Trevor Lawrence has been named the starter for week one. Thank Heaven the Jags are facing one of the other five terrible teams in the NFL this year: the Houston Texans.
Meyer’s Jaguars will win a handful of games this year because he gets to play Houston twice, and the Jags will play the three other AFC last-place teams along with two last-place teams from the NFC due to the scheduling patterns of the NFL. I’m eager to see if he has a nose for talent in the draft, and if he can work with his general manager to pick up draft picks via trades in the skillful approach Jimmy Johnson used in his days with the Dallas Cowboys.
Fun fact: Urban Meyer was part of my floor/town in Buckeye Boys’ State. He has a distinct German Catholic name, and his face is pretty recognizable, so there is no mistaken identity. It has changed very little over the years. He wasn’t a big talker then, and the only things I remember? He was a highly sought-after pro baseball prospect, and he would remind some of us - hanging around our “town” offices too long – to get to the gym or the pool on the Bowling Green campus.
I wonder if Meyer had any idea he’d turn that program around at the turn of the 21st century, let alone lead The Ohio State University football team to a national championship. My son, Parker, and I sit near the tunnel when we attend Ohio State football games. He asked me what Meyer would say if I shouted down to him that we were on the same floor/town at Boys’ State. I told him he’d probably shout, “SECURITY.”
*****
If you’re reading this before 9 a.m. Saturday, take time to tune into Tiger Talk with Roger Grossman. This show, on 99.7 FM and 1480 AM, covers scores around the area at the start, then move to a primary focus on interviews with coaches, guest senior athletes “in-season”, and a recap of the week’s action in Tiger athletics, and the upcoming week’s schedule of each Warsaw team.
Roger pointed out in last week’s Tiger Talk how the athletes being interviewed each year arrive to the show prepared with well-defined, and diverse post-graduation plans.
I believe these enjoyable athlete interviews we are hearing stem from two things: the on-demand availability of the Tiger Talk replays the athletes can now enjoy and get a feel for how their friends and teammates sound once they’re finished with Saturday practices or ballgames, and the decreased stigma of post-graduation plans involving apprenticeship in the trades, and in entry-level STEM opportunities.
My son had his 4½ minutes of fame on Tiger Talk two seasons ago. I was at a rugby test featuring my cousin’s spirited and tough-as-nails daughter, so I caught the replay. I was proud of Parker because he didn’t have any “ummm” or “uhhh” verbal pauses. He spoke with a halted cadence, and as usual, he economized his words. I was still impressed Grossman was able to keep him talking for a good bit. I wish Parker would have told the radio and podcast audiences his little-known fact was he collected nutcrackers. I believe he would have pleasantly surprised his host. He talked about his mountain bike instead, and that surprised Grossman, too. Current guests seem to surprise listeners on Tiger talk with their interests and family facts.
*****
Northern Lakes Conference member, NorthWood, was facing a cancellation of this week’s football game versus perennial 4A football power East Noble, who suspended all athletic activities through Aug. 31 due to COVID. The Black Crush from Nappanee found an opponent earlier this week when Logansport had the same issue with a canceled gridiron clash against Northwestern.
These COVID woes hit rather close to home with our friends in northern Wabash County, the Manchester Squires, who had to cancel their game against Bluffton when nearly an entire position group was affected by COVID protocols. Bluffton, in the meantime, quickly picked up a game against Hamilton Heights. Athletic offices and coaching staffs around the states are demonstrating how nimble they are in this circumstance when their teams are fortunate enough to stay safe and healthy.
The Delta variant, the vaccination rates continuing at unsatisfactory levels, and some other relaxed approaches toward otherwise effective preventive practices have already become a recipe for disaster two weeks into most school districts’ 2021-2022 school year.
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