![\"LP'S](\"http:\/\/midvalleysports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/DSC_0071-228x300.jpg\" "\\"DSC_0071\\"")
LP'S Jesus Vargas is a gridiron beast on Friday nights<\/p><\/div>\n
Good Afternoon!<\/p>\n
Actually I\u2019m not so inclined to give Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday the benefit of the doubt when many are saying he was protecting his Beltres in the bottom of ninth yesterday…I think he missed it…and I think it had nothing to do with the white towels being waved at Dodger Stadium.<\/span><\/p>\n Adam Wainwright needs to talk to his boys about the loss instead of blaming those waving towels at Chavez Ravine.<\/span><\/p>\n Does yesterday\u2019s heroics in any way erase Game Six, 1985, Jack Clark, and \u201cHe Who Must Not Be Named\u201d? No. Not at all. In fact in the cave of sports bitterness that exists in my heart where there is still weeping, darkness, and gnashing of teeth, 1985 is still there. <\/span><\/p>\n Will I ever be over it? Sure, when the Cardinals rot and lie stinking in the earth…until then…I\u2019m all good…<\/span><\/p>\n I love rivalry games tonight\u2019s Smudge Pot between Bonita and San Dimas is special. While I don\u2019t want to see anyone get hurt, I\u2019m not necessarily the kind of guy that wants to see smiles, hugs, and hear choruses of \u201ckumbaya\u201d after a game…especially at the pro level.<\/span><\/p>\n I do have a memory of being young and forced to do the obligatory handshake at the end of the game…(sucks what?)…Couldn\u2019t stand it…Fortunately I\u2019ve matured.<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes to the opponent in football I\u2019m more along the lines of former NFL HC Sam Wyche when he said: \u201cThat\u2019s the enemy over there, they\u2019re not your friends. You don\u2019t go over there, shake their hands, and hug their necks.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n While basketball was the sport I played, I\u2019ve come to fully understand that basketball is a game where you can easily turn off the \u201cOverdrive\u201d switch. Football has to be full throttle. If its not full throttle you\u2019re liable to do more than just cost your team, but injure yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n Full throttle players are a pleasure to watch like Bonita\u2019s Casey Horine or San Dimas\u2019 Christian Morgan.<\/span><\/p>\n Hitters deluxe like Arroyo\u2019s Mike Chavez, or Rosemead\u2019s Cesar Chavez from last year, or Temple City\u2019s Joe Reasner from two years ago. Players like Josh Lowden and Grant Haggard at M-Town this year. La Puente’s Jesus Vargas is one of these guys.<\/span><\/p>\n Also, I\u2019ve come to appreciate the guys who can take a hit and just keep getting up. I saw this last year in El Monte\u2019s Quang Phong, I saw it seven years ago in Rosemead\u2019s Joe Silva, you saw it SD\u2019s Nico Barbone, and its evident in M-Town\u2019s Nick Bueno, TC\u2019s Max Ruckle, and Arcadia\u2019s Garrett Tuck.<\/span><\/p>\n This is what makes football different…How do you go full throttle and then play nice? This is why we should admire the coaching staffs that are able to create gridiron beasts, yet channel the energy into something after the gun blasts to end the fourth quarter.<\/span><\/p>\n I may not be a fan of lining up at the 50 (especially when the coach you want to interview is on the other side) but the fact that it gets done, especially after a furious four quarters, amazes me.<\/span><\/p>\n Stay thirsty my friends\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n 132<\/span><\/p>\n Fanview Lite appears Monday thru Saturday at www.midvalleysports.com<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n