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SAFL 2010 Week 6 Game Schedule

SAFL 2010 Season Week 5 Newsletter

*** Newsletter Highlights ***

Welcome Statement

Highlights - World League

Highlights - National League

Highlights - American League

League Standings

Commissioner's Corner

SACAC Announcements

Senior Appreciation Day Announcement

Equipment Return

Tomo's Tips

Article Athletic Scholarships (NCSA)

"Bet You Didn't Know" Article on Football History

Pictures of the Week

***

Greetings And Welcome

Hello everyone! Welcome to the fifth edition of the regular 2010 season

Newsletter for the Singapore American Football League (SAFL). This edition

brings to you game highlights of the World, National and American League

games that were played this past week. We have very good game write-ups

contributed by Phil Morris (World League), Roy & Michael Connors (National

League) and David Moritz (American League). Photographs were contributed by

Andre DiBiagio, Maureen Pond, James Haensly, Shannon Chambers, Karl

Kimble, Julie Jackson, Ben Williams and many others. Sandy Lal volunteered

her professional editing skills and Tomo Tanabe contributed the write-up on

when to use ice-vs-heat.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the passion and dedication

of Phil Morris in the co-ordination, compilation and distribution of the SAFL

(All games this week

are at the SAS turf

field)

Fri Oct 15: NO GAMES

– FALL BREAK

Sat Oct 16: 3:00 pm

(World) Steelers –vs-

Bulldogs

Sat Oct 16: 6:30 pm

(following senior day

ceremony)

(World) Oilers –vs-

Vikings

***

THERE WILL BE NO

NATIONAL LEAGUE OR AMERICAN LEAGUE

GAMES THIS WEEK!.

***

Week 3 volunteers Thank you!

**************

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newsletter. Phil’s vision has helped the newsletter evolve from being a weekend

reader to a week’s worth of reading for SAFL football enthusiast, not just here in

Singapore but also all around the world. Due to Phil’s efforts and contributions,

this newsletter is able to bring you interesting and useful articles in addition to

the game write-ups. Thank you Phil! Without you this newsletter would not be

as flavorful. Also, a huge thank you to numerous others for their contributions

to help make this edition happen, and also to the players, coaches, referees,

chain gang, booth staff plus everyone else volunteering their time to make this

another successful SAFL season!

-Newsletter Editor

Game Highlights – World League

Vikings 20 – Bulldogs 6; 08 October 2010

Week #5 for the World League started out with a titanic class between two

battle-hardened competitors – the Bulldogs and the Vikings. The Vikings kicked

off to the Bulldogs, who started on their own 22 yard line. Nate Harris gave

Bulldogs fans something to cheer about right from the get-go, with a long dash

up to the midfield hash. But the Vikings got their tough defense in gear and put

a stop to the Bulldogs drive. The Men in Black punted the ball into the Viking

endzone for a touchback at the 20.

The Vikings started on their 20, but were soon rewarded with a 1st down made

by Joshua Dawe up to his own 31 yard line. Neil Smith carried the ball for

several yards, then Quarterback Tyler Creasman found Richard Vargo for a 1st

down at the Vikings 47 yard line. It was Dawe’s turn again, and he broke

several tackles to drive the ball to the Bulldogs 42. Chris Hampton pounded for

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a 1st down across the 40, and then QB Creasman layed one out for Richard

Vargo, who pulled in the long pass with one hand. 1st and 10 Vikings on the

Bulldogs 15 yard line!

But, if you were a Viking fan, you would say that tragedy struck when on a

short run up the middle, the Vikings fumbled the ball and Ty Rhodes scooped

the ball up for the Bulldogs just in front of his goal line.

It was the Bulldogs turn, and Creighton Little gave his team some breathing

room with an 8 yard run up off tackle. QB Andrew Roberts finished the 10

yards, and it was Bulldogs ball on their 16. Olivier Damas of the Bulldogs

caught a Danny McCarvel pass up need the 1st down marker, and Nate Harris

made a gutsy run on 4th down to keep the Bulldogs in business. And with this

play, the 1st Quarter came to a close with the score tied at nil.

At the start of the 2nd Quarter with the Bulldogs in possession, a pitchout went

wrong, and the fumble was recovered by Adi Tzidon deep in Bulldogs territory.

The Vikings Neil Smith and Joshua Dawe took turns pounding the ball down

towards the Bulldogs 10, and then David Shum took a short pass from Tyler

Creasman to give the Vikings 1st and goal. Dawe took the ball down to the 1

yard line, and then QB Creasman ran it in over the right side for the 1st score of

the game. Joshua Dawe streaked across for the 2-pt conversion, and the score

was Vikings 8, Bulldogs 0.

The Bulldogs took over on their own 40 yard line following the kick, and soon

thereafter, Creighton Little ran the ball over the right side to the Vikings 44 yard

line and a 1st down. Two plays later on a quarterback keeper, Andrew Roberts

sprinted around the left side and was finally hauled down on the Vikings 16 yard

line. Then the Bulldogs pulled off some ―razzle-dazzle‖ – On a mis-direction

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play, Roberts shoveled the ball to Asyraf Arslan who wove his way past Viking

defenders into the endzone for a Bulldogs score. The 2-pt conversion was no

good, and the score was Vikings 8, Bulldogs 6.

On the ensuing kickoff, Vikings Neil Smith made a nice return to the Bulldogs 45

yard line. The Vikings went 3 and out, and punted the ball to the Bulldogs, who

started on their own 30 yard line. Several plays later, however, Neil Smith of

the Vikings stepped in front of the Bulldogs receiver and picked off Danny

McCarvel’s pass, and ran the ball into the endzone for a Viking TD. The 2-point

conversion failed, but the scoring gap widened to 14-6, Vikings.

Although the Bulldogs received the ball back, they could not move it, so punted

back to the Men in White, who started on the Bulldogs 35 yard line. Joshua

Dawe and Chris Hampton combined for a 1st down to the Bulldogs 20, but that’s

as far as it went. On a Vikings pass attempt, Ty Rhodes intercepted the ball

and gave possession back to the Bulldogs with little time remaining in the half.

The score at halftime in this very hard-fought game was Vikings 14 and

Bulldogs 6.

At the start of the 2nd half, the Bulldogs kicked off to the Vikings, who brought

the ball back to their own 36 yard line. But the Vikings drive went nowhere,

and they punted to the Bulldogs. Andrew Roberts collected the punt and ran

the ball all the way across midfield into Vikings territory. However, a costly

penalty brought the ball all the way back to the Bulldogs 27, where the Men in

Black started their drive. However, this drive also did not advance, and the

ensuing punt landed the ball on the Vikings 35 yard line.

The Vikings QB Tyler Creasman showed that he could also run as well as throw,

by dashing along the right sideline down to the Bulldogs 42. Then Neil Smith

took the ball the other direction and ran left to the Bulldogs 19 yard line for

another 1st down. From that point, it was all David Shum, who sprinted over

left tackle for the 3rd Viking TD of the game. The points after failed, and the

score became Vikings 20, Bulldogs 6.

The Vikings kicked off to the Bulldogs, but the Dogs had to punt away again

after an unsuccessful set of downs. On the punt, however, the Vikings fumbled

the reception, and Bulldogs Asyraf Arslan fell on the ball inside Vikings territory

to give possession back to his team.

The Bulldogs were now in excellent field position; QB Danny McCarvel passed

over the middle to Creighton Little, who powered forward for a Bulldogs 1st

down. McCarvel continued to pass, connecting with Chase Pope at the Vikings

12 yard line. Danny McCarvel then kept the ball and ran down to the Vikings 12

yard line and a Bulldogs 1st down. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, they fumbled

at the goal line and Amar Hordatt-Reece and Adi Tzidon recovered for the

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Vikings. The 3rd Quarter ended with the Vikings in the lead and in possession of

the ball.

The 4th Quarter saw the Bulldogs once again driving on runs by Danny McCarvel

and Creighton Little, and a pass reception by Chase Pope. With the ball all the

way down to the Viking 2 yard line, the Bulldogs luck ran out, and they had to

turn the ball over on downs.

On a heads-up play by Olivier Damas, he stripped the ball from the Vikings

running back and ran the ball into the endzone for an apparent 6 points.

However, the Officials ruled that the play was dead prior to the steal. As a

result, no additional points for the Bulldogs, and the Vikings remained in

possession. The game ended with the score Vikings 20, Bulldogs 6.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: No camera photos were available for this week’s Bulldogs-

Vikings game, so the editor used frame shots from the game DVD instead.

Thanks to Sigma Video for use of their game DVD!!)

Oilers 22 – Steelers 12; 09 October 2010

The Week #5 game was the second meeting between these two top-ranked

teams, both having 3-1 records. The victors would emerge in sole possession of

1st place, so the battle was guaranteed to be physical and fierce. And it was!

The Steelers started the contest with a booming kick by Jeffry Smith. The ball

went out of bounds at the Oilers 1 yard line, but due to a penalty, the ball was

put in place at the 35. The Oilers went to work quickly by running the Wildcat

formation and moving the ball to midfield on a leaping run by Oiler Jake Walker.

Walker and Alex DiBiagio pounded the ball down to the Steelers 20 yard line on

several runs, including a nifty Wildcat reverse involving Walker, Trent Fish, and

DiBiagio.

With the ball on the Steeler 20, Jake Walker dodged his way down to the 9 yard

line before being brought down. But, that’s as far as the Oiler got – 2 fumbled

snaps plus determined Steeler defense stopped the Oiler drive on the 5 yard

line, where the Men in Yellow took over, 1st and 10.

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The Steelers took over deep in their own territory, but could not punch through

the Oiler defense. Jeffry Smith took up punting duties and hit a good one to the

Oilers 35 yard line, where it was taken by Oiler Garrett Holt. Unfortunately for

the Oilers, the Steelers Matt Conklin stripped the ball from Holt and gave the

Steelers a 1st and 10 on the Oilers 30 yard line. On the 2nd play from

scrimmage, Steeler QB Jamie Onischuk connected with running back Matt

Conklin on a screen pass, which he took all the way into the Oilers endzone for

6 points and the 1st score of the game. The Point After Touchdown (PAT) was

no good, and the score remained Steelers 6, Oilers 0.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Oilers Alex DiBiagio was dragged down near his own

endzone, so the Oilers started deep in their own territory. But aided by a costly

penalty, the Oilers began climbing out of the hole and moved the ball upfield.

Jake Walker again demonstrated why he is one of the best running backs in the

league by powering his way up to his own 45 yard line, and a big 1st down. It

was all Walker again as he gave the Boys in Blue another 1st down in Steelers

territory. However, a block-in-the-back penalty cost the Oilers much needed

yardage, and they were pushed back into Oiler turf. The 1st Quarter ended with

the Oilers still in possession near midfield. Score: Steelers 6, Oilers 0.

At the start of the 2nd Quarter, the Oilers drive stalled, and Robert Morris punted

the ball away, where the Steelers took over on their own 18 yard line. It didn’t

take long for the Steeler to demonstrate their power running game on a 44 yard

run around the

left side by Matt Conklin. With the ball on the Oilers 38, however, the defense

kicked in and the Steelers elected to punt the ball. Steeler Smith aimed for the

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Oilers goal line, but the ball bounced into the endzone for a touchback to the

Oilers 20.

The Oilers then geared up for another drive. Robert Morris now took the snap in

the Wildcat formation, and ran for a 1st down plus more on 3 consecutive

running plays. It looked like the Oilers drive was slowing down, when Jake

Walker handed off to Trent Fish who applied a burst of speed around the right

side and dashed all the way down to the Steeler 30 yard line. 1st and 10 Oilers.

The Oilers continued to drive, but only made it as far as the 22 of the Steelers

before turning the ball over on downs.

after a set of uneventful downs, the Steelers punted away and the ball rolled to

the Oilers 39. Jake Walker again got the call and found some real daylight as

he dashed to the Steelers 20 yard line for another 1st down. On the next play

from scrimmage, and aided by key blocks from Oilers Jeremy Lincoln, Corey

Burkett, Nickolai DiBiagio, and Alex DiBiagio, Walker wove his way into the

Steeler endzone for the Oilers 1st score of the day. The PAT was no good, and

the score was deadlocked at 6 in this very close game.

Deep in the 2nd Quarter, Jeffry Smith of the Steelers took the kickoff just in

front of his goal line, and sprinted all the way to the Oilers 26 yard line. Good

runs by Matt Conklin and Kevin Hurh were offset by penalties, and the Steelers

missed a 1st down by a foot. Oiler ball on their own 16 yard line.

Jake Walker clawed his way for an Oiler 1st down, and then tacked on more

yardage up to the 35. Trent Fish took the handoff on the next play and swung

around the right side for a gain up to his 40 yard line. An errant snap coupled

with concerted Steeler defense drove the Oilers back to the 35 yard line. Robert

Morris gave the Oilers some hope by pounding down to the Steelers 45 yard

line. Although Morris ran the ball another 5 yards, it wasn’t enough and the

Oilers turned the ball over on downs.

The Steelers realizing that only a few seconds were left before halftime, put up

the ball, but this pass was intercepted by Sam Wright of the Oilers, who then

lateralled the ball to Core Burkett. Burkett couldn’t evade the Steelers tacklers

and was brought down as the half ended. The score was tied at 6-apiece.

As the 2nd Half began, the Oilers kicked off and tried an on-side kick. The

Steelers maintained possession, and coupled with an Oilers penalty, started play

on the Oilers 37. The Steelers drive never really got started, and they elected

to punt the ball away. The Oilers took over on their own 21 yard line.

Similarly, the Oilers got nothing going and punted the ball. Again, Steeler ball

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on their own 48 yard line.

But as the Steelers geared up for another drive, the ball popped loose and was

recovered by Oilers Alex Wong on the Steelers 25 yard line. Oiler ball! Two

plays later, Jake Walker repeated a similar performance to his 1st TD behind the

blocking of his teammates Nicholai DiBiagio, Augusta Soeryadjaya, Corey

Burkett, and Robert Morris. The 2-point conversion by Walker was good, and

the Oilers led 14 to 6.

The Steelers responded to the Oiler challenge quickly. On the next set of

Steeler downs, Hayes Kimball found a hole in the Oiler defense and exploded for

70 yards and the 2nd Steeler touchdown of the evening. Jamie Onischuk of the

Steelers put up the 2-point conversion pass to Jake Derksen, but this pass was

deftly knocked away by Oilers Nicholai DiBiagio. The score gap narrowed to a

very tight 14-12, Oilers.

The Oilers received the ball back, but could not advance, so elected to punt.

Robert Morris put up a nearly 60 yard punt, driving the Steelers back to their

own 25. As their drive faltered, they punted to the Oilers. A decent return by

Oilers Alex DiBiagio was negated by a penalty, so the Oilers took over on their

40 yard line.

On the Oilers drive, QB Trent Fish also demonstrated his running abilities by

dashing to the Steelers 40 yard line, and a 1st down. The 3rd Quarter came to

an end with the score Oilers 14, Steelers 12. As in all great ballgames, the

outcome would be decided in the 4th Quarter.

And the 4th Quarter would not disappoint! Jake Walker took the handoff and

bulled his way to the Steelers 27 yard line. Then Robert Morris took the Wildcat

snap and thrust forward to the Steelers 18 for nearly 10 yards and an Oilers 1st

down. Morris wasted

no time in consummating the Oilers drive on a quick sprint off left tackle and

into the Steelers endzone. Robert Morris tacked on two more as he fell forward

across the goal line, making the score Oilers 22, Steelers 12.

The rest of the 4th Quarter was a see-saw affair with gains by both offensive

units, but also determined defensive play, including a shoe-lace interception by

Oilers Sam Wright which put an end to a Steelers drive. As a result, the score

remained unchanged and the final outcome in this heated, closely contested

game was Oilers 22 and the Steelers 12.

- Thanks to Sports Writer Phil Morris for the game write-ups and Sports

Photographers Andre DiBiagio & Karl Kimble for the great photographs.

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Game Highlights – National League

Cougars 16–Raiders 6

On the first play from scrimmage, the Cougars’ Brett Bertamini ripped off a 14-

yard run to midfield, tearing through the defense like a hot knife through butter.

To set up another first down, Tom Kim ran over the left side for 10 yards,

eventually reaching the Raiders’ 37-yard line before Daniel Brundage made the

stop. But on third and 6 from the 33-yard line, an errant shotgun snap

unleashed the hounds as Raiders Teaguen Stanczak and Eliot Sperling chased

Cole Derksen all the way back to the Raiders’ 48-yard line. On fourth and 21

the Cougar punt was returned 30 yards by Jack Albanese to the Cougars’ 41-

yard line. Justin Hunt stopped Daniel Brundage after a 2-yard gain on first

down. Then thunder struck. Albanese rambled 34 yards down to his 5-yard line.

Luckily for the Cougars, Hannes Herrel was there to save the touchdown. After

being stopped after just a yard on first and goal, Albanese carried the ball

across the goal line from the 4-yard line on second down. The conversion

attempt was fumbled away, but with 5:53 to go in the first quarter the Raiders

were up 6–0 over the Cougars.

Tom Kim ran for 25 yards to midfield on the Cougars’ first play after the kickoff,

but a block in the back penalty proved a harsh reversal of fortune. Robert

Picard kept the Cougar wheels in reverse with a 6-yard sack of Cole Derksen

down to the 10-yard line. Successive solid runs by Brett Bertamini and Tom

Kim gained 23 yards for the Cougars, but on fourth and 3 from the 33-yard line

Picard hit Bertamini in the backfield and Jack Albanese came to his aid to stop

Bertamini for no gain. Raider ball.

A solo tackle by Cougar Nick Holl and his second tackle on the next play with an

assist from Tom Kim had the Raiders facing third and 10 from the Cougars’ 33-

yard line. Enter Daniel Brundage, who gained 9 yards on third down and

another 6 yards on an inside reverse to set up first and 10 from the Cougars’

18-yard line. Oh, but the football gods are fickle. Jack Albanese was motoring

toward the end zone and a potentially insurmountable 2-touchdown lead when

he lost the handle and Cougar Chris Ragsdale alertly covered the ball for his

team.

Starting from their 3-yard line, the Cougars began what might remain this

season’s finest offensive series in the National League. On first down Tom Kim

took a pitch right, cut back up the middle, and was dragged down at the 17-

yard line by a determined Sean Mouton, who undoubtedly saved a touchdown

with his tackle. After two incomplete passes—one due to another poor snap

from the shotgun formation—Brett Bertamini ended the first quarter with a 6-

yard run up to the 23-yard line. Kim’s 5-yard run on fourth and 4 was one of

several clutch plays and gutsy calls by the Cougars on The Drive.

The next nine plays covering 56 yards were runs out of the backfield by Brett

Bertamini and Tom Kim and quarterback keepers by Cole Derksen. Nick Holl

churned out 5 yards to stretch out the defense. This was old-time, line-them-

up-and-watch-them-hit, football. The successful Cougar running game was

achieved against a strong Raider defense. Cougar runners were taken to the

ground by Daniel Brundage, Robert Picard, Sean Mouton, Tim Cargan, Jack and

Michael Albanese, Eliot Sperling, and Tristan Lee. The only pass completion of

the drive was a Derksen play-action pass to Holl, who made a leaping catch and

ran the remainder for a 16-yard touchdown. Kim willed himself over the right

side and into the end zone to give the Cougars the lead 8–6 with 5:45 to play in

the game.

On the Raiders’ first and 10 from their own 35-yard line, Jack Albanese would

have run all the way to the baseball field had Sean Yoo not made the saving

tackle on the Cougars’ 48-yard line. The Raiders ran the same play on first

down, but this time Albanese fumbled and Yoo recovered the ball to set his

team up on their own 47-yard line.

Josh Haensly stopped Tom Kim on first down after only a yard, but then Brett

Bertamini picked up the first down at the Raiders’ 43-yard line, where Henri

Manachi tackled him. Bertamini moved the pile forward for 7 yards down to the

35-yard line. After Robert Picard and Tristan Lee tackled Cole Derksen for a 2-

yard loss, Kim settled matters by taking a pitch left and running 37 yards for a

touchdown. Cougars 14, Raiders 6 with 2:42 to go.

This 2-point conversion was critical for both teams. Quarterback Cole Derksen

was hit in the backfield, spun loose, evaded three tacklers, and propelled

himself into the end zone to push the Cougar advantage to 10 points. Cougars

16, Raiders 6.

From the Raiders’ own 41-yard line, Shiv Lal tackled Eliot Sperling after only a

1-yard gain. After a holding penalty made it second and 19 from their own 33-

yard line, Jack Albanese hit Sean Mouton with a halfback option pass down to

the Cougars’ 40-yard line. Mouton broke off his route to come back for the ball

to make a nice catch, and Sean Yoo made the tackle despite falling down on the

play. Quality football was being played on both sides of the line. But the Raider

threat ended with Cole Derksen coming over from his free safety position to

intercept an Albanese pass. Final score: Cougars 16, Raiders 6.

Chargers 30–Raiders 0

The Raiders were forced to punt on their first series, and Eliot Sperling’s

beautiful 43-yard spiral down to the Chargers’ 20-yard line was returned 12

yards by Jack Devins. Andrew Taylor was stopped after 6 yards on first down

by Josh Haensly and Daniel Brundage. Bas Sock gained the first down with 5

yards up the middle on the hurry-up offense. On first and 10 from their own

41-yard line, the Chargers faked a dive right and handed off to Bas Sock up the

middle for 18 yards. Then the hammer fell. Ryan Pond took a handoff and

swept around left end, covering all 41 yards to the end zone. Touchdown

Chargers. The conversion failed on a bobbled exchange, but the Chargers led

6–0 just 3 minutes into the game.

The next Raider series started with two failed snaps and ended with a poor punt

that set up the Charger offense on the Raiders’ 49-yard line.

Andrew Taylor’s in-motion handoff around right end run was good for 19 yards

on first down. After a penalty, Taylor’s 14-yard run brought his team down to

the 28-yard line, but they were facing a tough third and 8 from the Raiders’ 28-

yard line.

Send in Pond. Ryan Pond. 009 again swept around left side to cover all 28

yards for his second touchdown, pushing the Charger advantage to 12–0 with

4:00 left in the game.

In the next series the Raiders were forced to punt on fourth and 31 from their

own 27-yard line, but the punt was partially blocked, setting up the Chargers on

the Raiders’ 40-yard line. After Jack Albanese stopped Ryan Pond on first down

for just a 5-yard gain, Cameron Creasman skipped through a huge hole in the

line for an 8-yard gain and a first down. Runs by Creasman, Jack Devins, and

Andrew Taylor kept linebackers Daniel Brundage and Eliot Sperling particularly

busy. The first play of the second quarter was more of the same from the

Chargers as quarterback Devins hit Pond out of the backfield on fourth and 6 for

a 12-yard touchdown. Pond added the 2-point conversion running around the

left side, to make the score 20–0 Chargers over the Raiders with 9:55 left in the

game.

The Raiders were again forced to punt on fourth and 20 from their own 30-yard

line after nice tackles by Connor Cione and Thomas Hewitt. But on the fourth

down, play pressure from Amos Chi and Sean Farris foiled the punt attempt and

the Chargers took over on the Raiders’ 26-yard line. On the Chargers’ next play

from scrimmage, Cameron Creasman bulled his way past the line, accelerated

into the secondary, and went untouched from there into the end zone for

another Charger touchdown. Ryan Pond’s successful 2-point conversion made

the score 30–0 Chargers over the Raiders with 8:06 to play.

Jack Albanese’s electrifying 25-yard kickoff return was negated by a fumble

recovered by Charger Michael Lin. Starting from their own 39-yard line, the

Chargers moved the ball down to the Raiders’ 15-yard line through the running

of Andrew Taylor, Ryan Pond, and Alex Jackson. Michael Albanese, Daniel

Brundage, and Eliot Sperling limited the damage for the Raiders, and it was

Brundage’s solid hit on a Charger ball carrier that turned the ball back over to

the Raiders on their own 12-yard line. After the teams both turned the ball over

on downs, the Raiders took over at their own 11-yard line. But an Alex

Robinson sack of the Raider quarterback at the 1-yard line set up the game’s

final play, where the Chargers were awarded a safety for tackling a Raider ball

carrier in the end zone. Final score: Chargers 30, Raiders 0.

Cougars 12, Chargers 6

The Cougars’ Hannes Herrel lined up for the kickoff probably wondering whom

he would be blocking on the play. Instead, the ball rolled his way and he made

the best of an unexpected situation by making the first three Charger tacklers

miss and then turning on the after-burners down the left sideline for a 60-yard

touchdown run to open up the afternoon’s third game. Just 13 seconds into the

game, the Cougars led 6–0 and served notice that their season’s first victory

earlier in the day was no one-hit wonder.

Jack Devins had a nice 22-yard kickoff return to set the Chargers up on their

own 42-yard line, but Nick Holl, with an assist from Justin Hunt, threw Cameron

Creasman for a yard loss on third and 4, and on fourth and 5 Sean Yoo stopped

Ryan Pond for a 3-yard loss. The Cougars came out flinging the pigskin on first

down, drawing a pass interference call, bringing the ball down to the Chargers’

30-yard line. However, Tom Kim fumbled at the end of a fine run and Andrew

Taylor recovered on his own 24-yard line for the Chargers.

On second and 15, quarterback Jack Devins passed for 18 yards to Andrew

Taylor to move the chains for the Chargers. After back-to-back pass

incompletions, Sean Farris recovered teammate Ryan Pond’s fumble caused by

a jarring hit by Cole Derksen. On fourth and 12 from their own 35-yard line,

Devins’s pass just slid off Pond’s fingertips. Cougar ball. Brett Bertamini

showed a fine piece of running on first down, and a 5-yard face-mask penalty at

the end of the play brought the ball down to the Chargers’ 17-yard line.

However, Connor Cione and Sean Farris sacked Derksen on third down back at

the 25-yard line, and Cione stopped Nick Holl on fourth down to turn the ball

back over to the Chargers.

Sean Yoo’s knack for big plays came in handy for the Cougars as he stepped in

front of a pass on first down to set his offense up on the Chargers’ 23-yard line.

On second down, Tom Kim swept the left side for 21 yards and a 12–0 Charger

lead with 4:02 left in the first quarter.

Cole Derksen’s interception on the Chargers’ first play from scrimmage kept the

Charger offense off the field for another series of plays. The Charger defense

led by Thomas Hewitt, Alex Robinson, and Connor Cione pushed the Cougars

back to their own 39-yard line, forcing a punt on fourth down. On second and

10 from their own 44-yard line Ryan Pond loped 9 yards, and Jack Devins

completed the first down on the next play to move the chains for the Chargers.

Cameron Creasman’s 1-yard gain on second down was the final play of the first

quarter, with the scoreboard still showing Cougars 12, Chargers 0. Pond opened

up the final quarter with an 18-yarder down to the 21-yard line before Hannes

(not just living on one play) Herrel tackled him. Creasman bounced off several

players—some were his own—to earn 4 hard yards down to the 17-yard line.

On fourth and 5 from the 16-yard line, Justin Hunt and Nick Holl tackled Pond.

In a game with no shortage of big plays, this defensive stand by the Cougars

was huge. The game clock read 8:37 to go.

Tom Kim moved the chains on first down with an 11-yarder to provide much-

needed breathing room for the Cougars. Equally impressive was Ryan Pond’s

solo tackle preventing Kim from clipping off a big gainer. On second down Brett

Bertamini was tackled for a 5-yard loss by Brett Moody and Connor Cione, and

after Cole Derksen’s third down pass fell incomplete the Cougars punted on

fourth down.

Jack Devins was hurt on a first down pass incompletion, and his absence from

the lineup contributed to fumbled snaps on second and third down. On fourth

and 7 from the Cougars’ 39-yard line Cameron Creasman, recovering from a

messy exchange from the quarterback, made a great run down to the 29-yard

line to keep the Charger rally alive. Cole Derksen and Shiv Lal combined to stop

Creasman on first down after only a 2-yard gain. On third and 14 Devins

courageously re-entered the game as quarterback, but he was offered little

sympathy from the trio of Tom Kim, Jacob Kang, and Chris Ragsdale, who

combined to stop Devins after a 3-yard scramble. Facing fourth down and 11

yards, Devins connected with Andrew Taylor for a 12-yard gain and a first

down. Now battling the clock and a ferocious Cougar rush, Devins gamely stood

in the pocket and again completed a pass to Taylor, who was covered well by

several Cougars. The play covered 21 yards, and it was a pretty piece of

football. Devins covered 7 yards on another must-make fourth down play to set

up first and goal on the 4-yard line. Ryan Pond took it the distance to cut the

Cougar lead to 12–6 with 1:03 to play. After a mad scramble for the ball on the

onside kick, Jack Ward finally pounced on the ball to seal the victory for the

Cougars. Final score: Cougars 12, Chargers 6.

- Thanks to Roy & Micheal Connors, for providing the NL game write-ups.

Game Highlights – American League

Longhorns 0–Gators 0

This week began with a kickoff by the Longhorns to the Gators.

The kickoff bounced around a bit and was finally pounced on by William DiBiagio

on the Gators’ 16-yard line. DiBiagio then ran the ball on the next two plays for

a total of 7 yards, 5 of which were lost on an offside call against the Gators on

third down. DiBiagio recovered those yards on the next play, but on fourth

down the snap was too high and he had to recover the ball on the 5-yard line

before Jack Hollister could get to it.

The Longhorns started their drive with a fumble and lost a couple of yards,

which Daelen Denenberg recovered on a short run on second down. On third,

Bradley Park tried a quick run but was brought down by Gavin Hall and Carter

Ware for a sack. On fourth down Bradley Park tried for a touchdown pass under

significant pressure, but the pass was intercepted by the Gators’ Zachary

Turmon. He ran the ball back to the 19-yard line before being knocked down by

Jonathan Picard and Miller Williams.

The Gators’ next drive started with a 9-yard run by Gavin Hall to the 28-yard

line. He was tackled by Harri Starr, Nate Bernard, and William Hewitt. On

second down Hall kept the ball again and ran up the left sideline for 33 yards to

the Longhorns’ 20-yard line, evading a number of tackles before being stopped

by Miller Williams. On the next play, the snap was too high again and Hall had

to pounce on the ball for a 12-yard loss.

Then came a 5-yard penalty, so that Hall’s next run brought the Gators back to

the Longhorns’ 28-yard line for third and 18. Hall carried the ball again and was

tripped up by Braxton Fish for fourth and 12, which the Gators were unable to

convert. The ball reverted to the Longhorns on their 22-yard line.

William Hewitt started the drive with a 2-yard run. Miller Williams carried the

ball next to try and get around the right side, but he was stopped in his tracks

by a big hit by Nicholas Hurst for a loss. Hewitt then tried to run up the left side

but was tackled nicely by Roy Connors on the 28-yard line. The Longhorns

punted, and the ball was fielded by Julian Padgett to the 22-yard line.

Sykes tried the left side first but lost a yard. Then William DiBiagio managed to

gain 5 yards up the middle. On third down Sykes tried again, this time up the

middle, but was stopped by Jonathan Picard. On fourth down and 6, the Gators

went for it by giving the ball to DiBiagio, who managed to rush for 25 yards up

the middle to the Longhorns’ 33-yard line for a first down. Kyle Froemke kept

the ball on the next play and managed 2 yards. DiBiagio then took the ball 7

yards just short of the first down. Froemke, under pressure from Miller

Williams, threw the ball out of bounds on the next play. On fourth down, the

snap was again too high but DiBiagio recovered on the 36-yard line. However,

the ball went to the Longhorns.

The Longhorns’ Bradley Park got sacked on the first play by Carter Ware for a 5-

yard loss. They immediately gained those yards back from a Gators offside.

But Park was sacked again on the next play. On fourth down, Daelen

Denenberg had to stretch for a high snap and then was tackled for a big loss by

Carter Ware and Finn Sykes. So the Gators got the ball back on the 26-yard

line.

Hall tried a run up the left side but was stopped cold by Andrew Sabol. The

Gators couldn’t muster up enough after that, and the game ended. Final score:

Longhorns 0, Gators 0.

Gators 16–Rams 0

The Gators kicked off to the Rams, and the ball was taken to the 32-yard line by

Jay You. The Rams started their offense by fumbling the snap, which was

recovered by Kyle Froemke of the Gators. William DiBiagio carried the ball up

the middle for a first down to the 22-yard line. Zach Turmon then got a 5-yard

carry. On third down Joe Brick sacked Froemke for a 5-yard loss. DiBiagio then

carried the ball 5 yards before being stopped by Collin Pond. On fourth down

the Gators didn’t manage to make any progress, and the ball went over to the

Rams on their 21-yard line.

Collin Pond then got the ball and broke a few tackles to gain 10 yards. The next

play was a beautiful one by the Rams. Pond took the snap and ran down the left

side but, when facing pressure, exercised his option to flip the ball over to Ryan

Thomas, who muscled his way to the 38-yard line and a first down. A few plays

later and the Rams fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Jackson Post of

the Gators on the 30-yard line.

Gavin Hall then carried the ball for the Gators on the next few plays until he was

able to punch the ball into the end zone for a touchdown. Gators 8, Rams 0.

The ensuing kickoff was fielded by Nick Cione to the 35-yard line. Cione passed

the ball to Nils Berggren for a couple of yards. Then Cione ran the ball for a

first down to the Gators’ 25-yard line. But on the next play he was sacked by

Thomas Samuels for a 5-yard loss. A fumble on the next play and the Gators

got the ball.

The Gators started off with a nice play. Kyle Froemke made a convincing fake

handoff to Finn Sykes but kept the ball to run up the right side for an 18-yard

gain before being tackled by Robert Moritz. Sykes then ran the ball up the

middle for 5 yards to end the quarter. William DiBiagio kept the ball on the

next two plays for a few yards. On the second carry, the Rams ganged up for a

hard-hitting stop by Bryce Yoder, Joe Brick, Nick Cione, and Robert Moritz. A

couple of players were shook up on that play! DiBiagio came back strong with a

clutch catch from a Froemke pass to get to the 2-yard line. Then Yoder and

Brick sacked Sykes in the backfield. Froemke then ran up the ball on the right

side for the touchdown. Gators 16, Rams 0.

Nick Cione jumped on the onside kickoff to start things off on the 30-yard line.

On second down, Collin Pond tried to run the ball and got hit by a bunch of

Gators but refused to go down. He then flicked the ball to Alex Follette, who

surprised everyone by running up the right sideline to the Gators’ 32-yard line

for a huge gain of 22 yards. Follette then caught a couple of passes for a 2-yard

gain. But the ball then went back to the Gators.

The Gators didn’t manage to convert the drive into any more points, and the

game ended. Final score: Gators 16, Rams 0.

Longhorns 26–Rams 0

The kickoff by Bradley Park was returned by Robert Moritz to the 22-yard line.

The Rams tried a few running plays but didn’t manage to generate much

yardage so were forced to punt from their 15-yard line. Harri Starr fielded the

punt and got to the 17-yard line before being tackled by Nick Cione. Daelen

Denenberg then ran the ball up the left sideline for a touchdown. Longhorns 8,

Rams 0.

The next kickoff was fielded by Jay You to the 38-yard line. Collin Pond ran to

the left side and flipped the ball to Ryan Thomas, who stretched for a 2-yard

gain. Wesley Dimond and then Pond both tried up the middle runs but failed to

make a first down, and the ball went back to the Longhorns on the 35-yard line.

The Longhorns ran the ball to the left, but Callaghan Crowley penetrated the

backfield and pulled William Hewitt down for a 5-yard loss. The next few plays

failed to deliver much yardage to the Longhorns, and they were forced to punt.

The punt was out of bounds at the 36-yard line.

Nick Cione kept the ball on the next play to run 9 yards. But the next play was

intercepted by Jonathan Picard for a 45-yard touchdown. Longhorns 14, Rams

0.

Nick Cione fielded the kickoff to the 25-yard line. But the next play was

fumbled, and the Longhorns got the ball on the 20-yard line.

Harri Starr ran to the right side to gain 8 yards. William Hewitt then kept the

ball and ran 15 yards up the left sideline. He almost scored but was tackled by

Brian Yan at the 5-yard line. A few plays later and Starr threw a nice pass to

Hewitt for the touchdown. Longhorns 20, Rams 0.

Jay You fielded the kickoff and ran to the 34-yard line. The Rams then fumbled

the ball, which was recovered by the Longhorns. The Longhorns then scored on

a long pass by Bradley Park to Daelen Denenberg to end the first quarter.

Longhorns 26, Rams 0.

The Rams ran the ball up the right side via Garrett Chambers and then Wesley

Dimond to get the first down. After a penalty, Dimond ran the ball another 6

yards. The Rams tried a reverse on fourth down but didn’t quite make the first

down, and the ball reverted to the Longhorns.

The Longhorns didn’t manage to score on their next possession, and the game

ended. Final score: Longhorns 26, Rams 0.

- Thanks David Motitz for providing the AL game write-ups.

League Standings

2010 WORLD LEAGUE STANDINGS

W L T PCT PF PA OILERS 4 1 0.800 150 44 VIKINGS 3 2 0.600 68 64

STEELERS 3 2 0.600 64 84 BULLDOGS 5 0.000 26 124

W L T PCT PF PA

CHARGERS 7 2 1 0.700 190 86

RAIDERS 5 5 0.500 130 136 COUGARS 2 7 1 0.200 78 176

W L T PCT PF PA GATORS 9 1 0.900 150 58 LONGHORNS 5 4 0.556 122 78 RAMS 10 1 0.000 54 200

Commissioner’s Corner

This week, I would like to recognize all of the people who have contributed to

make the 2010 SAFL season an overwhelming success so far. Especially to the

players, who week after week, have "given their all" in the spirit of competition

and sportsmanship. Such effort reminds me of words spoken by the 26th

president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt:

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man

stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit

belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust

and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and

again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends

himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of

high achievement; and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring

greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who

know neither victory nor defeat."

We have had five great weeks so far, and I'm looking forward to three more

exciting weeks of football!!

-Jeff Woodard, SAFL Commissioner

SACAC Announcement

FOOTBALL ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. The whole SACAC Community withes the Falcons GOOD LUCK in Korea, and

in the coming week here at home versus Kubasaki!

2. We would like to thank all of the hardworking SAFL Volunteers for all their

help and support of our league. Without them none of this would be possible.

Also, a special thanks to Fred Gomez, SAFL Newsletter Editor, who is leaving

our community. Best wishes to you Fred!

OTHER SACAC ANNOUNCEMENTS:

3. SACAC would like to thank everyone who has tried and tested our new Online

Registration system. We appreciate your patience and kind words of support.

Our aim is to make it easier for everyone to register from the comfort of your

own home, at a time that suits you. (We still welcome a visit to the office for

any reason; when you're in the neighborhood, stop by and say hello!)

4. On Wednesday, October 27th at 7pm, SACAC joins hands with Lotto Carpets

Gallery at Blk 26 #01-04, Dempsey Road, to raise funds for SACAC programs.

Please join us for a memorable evening of rare and unique carpets, delicious

Indian food, plenty of beverages, and an old-fashioned carpet auction.

***

SAFL Senior Appreciation Day

SAFL seniors and their mothers will be acknowledged on Saturday, October 16th

at 6:15pm. Join the SAFL community in the stands for this moment of

appreciation. As our World League regular season comes to a close, together

with SAFL leadership, let’s fire up for FALCON FOOTBALL!!!

Please note that senior moms should meet on the 50 yard sideline no later than

6:10pm. Senior players should gather midfield immediately after the

Bulldogs/Steelers game.

***

Equipment Return

As the 2010 SAFL season nears its close, we write this article to all players and

parents on our final task to make our season complete… the proper return of

our equipment for next season.

In the next couple of weeks each team and league will be informed on the date

and time for the return of their properly cleaned and dried equipment. As in the

past, Team Moms will be asked to coordinate their teams equipment to ensure

proper collection, completion of league inventory and to help us plan our re-

conditioning and ordering of new equipment for next year. We will also be

seeking additional volunteers on this day to assist in the return and storage in

our HS basement storage facility.

It is very important and the responsibility of each player to ensure all

equipment is properly cleaned before returning. Please read the instructions

below on how to clean and dry your equipment prior to turning in.

Cleaning and Washing of Equipment

Shoulder Pads

Shoulder pads should be washed in a tub with a small amount of mild laundry

soap and set out to dry in an area with good air circulation. A small amount of

household disinfectant such as Dettol can be added to the water. Please allow

at least 72 hours drying time to ensure the pads are thoroughly dried.

Helmets

Helmets need to be stripped of all team tape and logos and and returned

cleaned. To wash helmets use a damp sponge with mild laundry soap and a

small amount of household disinfectant such as Dettol and wipe helmet inside

and out including the face mask and chin straps. Air dry the helmet in an area

of good air circulation until dry. Please do not use any abrasive material to

scrub the helmet clean as it will ruin the helmet’s finish.

Pants and Pads

All practice pants, girdles, belts and pads can be machine or hand washed with

mild laundry soap, a small amount of disinfectant and dried before returning.

Your cooperation in proper cleaning, drying and return of your equipment will be

greatly appreciated and help us to ensure a another fine season of football next

year!

Thank you everyone.

Rick Vargo

Equipment Manager

Tomo’s Tips: When to use ice vs heat?

When to use ice vs heat?

As football season gets closer to the end, your body gets exhausted from

weeks of training and it could take longer for your body to recover, whether it

is for your next practice or game. By taking care of your body before and after

practice, you’ll be able to prepare your body better for practices and games,

thus minimize the risk of getting injured.

ICE

When to use ice? Main purpose of using ice is to;

control the pain minimize the amount of tissue damage reduce swelling decrease muscular fatigue

Use of ice is recommended at acute stage (up to 48hours from the time of

injury).

*It is also important to elevate and apply compression for treating acute

injuries.

*Use of ice prior to activity is usually not recommended. If you want to ice,

ice at least an hour before activity in order to have sufficient time for your

body to get loose.

Application of ice

Ice bag

• Put ice on for 20 min and off for 1 hour and repeat as much as you can.

Ice massage

• Put water in the paper cup and put it in the freezer

• When ready, apply the ice cup to the injured area and massage gently,

drawing circles

Ice water immersion

• Have a bucket ready and put water with ice

• Place the injured body part in the bucket and immerse for 5 min

HEAT

When to use heat?

Main purpose of using heat is to;

increase extensibility of muscles/ligaments decrease the muscle spasm increase joint stiffness increase blood flow

Use of heat is NOT recommended during acute stage of injuries (up to72hrs

from the injury) except for chronic injuries, such as low back pain, tendinitis.

Once it is in the sub-acute stage (72 hours after the injury), heat would be an

ideal modality to treat injuries.

ICE AND HEAT

In some cases, it helps to use both ice and heat alternatively (contrast bath)

to recover faster. Contrast bath, using both ice water and hot water

immersion, allows the blood vessels to constrict and dialate, working as a

pump. This will help to reduce the swelling which is sometimes difficult to get

rid of after an injury.

• Have 2 buckets ready. Put water with ice in one and hot water (about

40C°) in the other.

• Immerse the injured body part in the hot water for 2min and then switch

to the cold for 2 min.

• Alternate hot and cold for 15 minutes.

*End with cold water, if NO exercise after contrast bath

*End with hot water, if exercise after contrast bath

SUMMARY

Use ICE;

• After acute injury for the first 2-3 days following injuries

• After rehabilitation exercise

• After practice/game when you are sore

Use HEAT;

• After 3-4 days following injury

• Before practice when the joint/muscle is stiff

• Before you stretch

Use contrast bath;

• After 3-4 days following injury, especially when you want to reduce

swelling

- Contributed by Tomo Tanabe

NCSA Athletic

Recruiting: The Recruiting Network that connects more than 35,000 college

coaches at over 1,700 Universities

with qualified student athletes

through education, technology and relationships

The Next Step in Athletics… Guidance from NCSA

(National Collegiate Scouting Association)

What Should I Include In My Cover Letter?

Coach Taylor at NCSA,

When sending highlight videos to colleges you’re interested in, should a

cover letter be enclosed or just a note stating my interest. If so, what

exactly should it state besides my desire to play for their organization?

I would definitely recommend including a cover letter. The only reason you

might not include a cover letter with your video is if you already have sent one

to this particular coach. It is a good idea to keep track of what you send to each

coach.

Here are some tips to keep in mind when constructing your cover letter to

coaches:

1. Most every coach now relies on e-mail to both contact and receive contact

from potential recruits. That is the preferred method of communication. To find

out the e-mail addresses for the coaches you are looking to contact, simply go

to the college’s athletic website and look for a staff listing of names and e-mails

or ask your Recruiting Coach.

2. Be brief. Coaches at all levels receive dozens and dozens of e-mails/letters

from high school-aged players. All you are trying to do is show you have

interest, pass along all of your contact information, your resume, and provide

each coach with an upcoming schedule of your matches so he can see you play.

3. NEVER HAVE ONE OF YOUR PARENTS WRITE TO A COACH. You are the one

the coach might be recruiting, so he/she wants to hear from you directly. (If the

relationship develops and it appears that you might be attending that college,

they’ll be plenty of time for your parents to have contact with the coaching

staff.)

4. Provide contact information for yourself and your coaches. Nothing is worse

for a college coach than to have to track down your coach’s e-mail or phone

number. By having both an e-mail address and a phone number listed after

his/her name, it allows for the college coach to quickly e-mail or call your

private and/or high school coach to follow up.

5. Always include basic information about yourself such as grad year, high

school, athletic history, GPA, SAT/ACT scores. Tell the coach why you are a

good fit for their program.

6. Do not send a form letter that starts out with ―Dear Coach‖ and does not

mention anything specific about his/her program and school. The bulk of your e-

mail will be kept the same for correspondence you send out to various coaching

staff; however a portion of it should be personalized. Bring in something specific

about it that you learned by going through the website. State your interest in

the school and specific reasons (like ―my Dad went to Madison and I want to

carry on the tradition‖ or whatever fits you personally)

7. Detail is important! Be sure that you use spell check and proper English. This

is a reflection of your ability. You may send your letter to NCSA to revise.

8. If you are emailing rather than regular mail, DO NOT mass email a bunch of

coaches. This comes across as lazy and shows the coach that you didn’t take

your time to personalize for them. Make sure to address the letter Dear Coach

[[last name]].

Send your recruiting questions to askcoachtaylor@ncsasports.org or click here

(link) to join the NCSA Network.

You can also get your questions answered directly by contacting an NCSA

Recruiting Coordinator at 866-579-6272.

I BET YOU DIDN’T KNOW THIS ABOUT FOOTBALL….

Fifth and Goal

Every day, a good-natured insurance man walks into his office restroom to wash

his hands. On the walls, all over the john, are the most peculiar memorabilia.

There is a matted slab of lime-green artificial turf that is harder than a mallet.

There is a photo of a quarterback straining for the end zone. There is a poster

signed by two football coaches. There is a down marker with a ridiculous "5" on

it.

A tour of the Wall of Shame in the office bathroom.

Every time the insurance man is in there, a 20-year-old football game comes

rushing back to him. Something vanished that game, something he and college

football will never get back. People ask him all the time how he could lose

something so bright and loud and shiny -- "How can you lose a down in a

football game?" -- and he wants to say, "I plead the fifth." Ha, that would be

funny.

Then again, it's been 20 years, and if the insurance man can't laugh at arguably

the biggest faux pas in college football history, a faux pas so unthinkable that it

flew over the heads of seven referees, dozens of coaches and savvy radio and

TV men … then when can he laugh?

So that's why, 20 years later, he keeps what he calls a Wall of Shame in, of all

places, his office bathroom.

Because he'd like to flush it.

Inexplicable

Tom Friend tells the story of the infamous fifth down.

He's not the only one. There are men to the north, south, east and west who

deal regularly with the same flashback. There's the old coach in Westminster,

Colo., who says he's sorry. There's the old coach in El Paso who says he

could've called timeout to investigate. There's the old ref in Arkansas City, Kan.,

who says he was careless. There's the old head linesman in Jenks, Okla., who

says it cost him a shot at the NFL. There's the old quarterback in Boulder, Colo.,

who says he was only following orders. And there's the old center in Denver

who says he knew. Or thought he knew. And was told to shut up.

On Oct. 6, 1990, a football game was stolen, and the culprit was … the fates. It

was a day when math teachers lost count and sure runners slipped and fell. It

was a day when telephones went unanswered and a down marker played tricks

with people's minds. If there were an easy explanation, it would've been

explained by now. If there were any one villain, he would've surfaced. The

consensus, 20 years later, is that it was a once-in-a-lifetime accident, that there

will never be another football game that ends on Fifth Down. But only one man

from that day is still on the playing field, only one can make sure it never

happens again -- at least in his own stadium.

The insurance man.

The other 'U'

In 1989, the Buffaloes were undefeated through the Orange Bowl before losing

what was essentially a national title game to Notre Dame and Rocket Ismail 21-

6. The devastated CU players made a postgame vow to return to Miami the next

year at whatever cost.

One problem: The 1990 schedule was a bear. CU opened at eighth-ranked

Tennessee with a tie, lost by a point at 25th-ranked Illinois but seemed to right

the ship with a rousing win at 12th-ranked Texas. Teams were gearing up for

the Buffs now, putting nine men in the box, and CU was trying too hard to be

perfect. Hagan was dealing with a shoulder injury, too. But the Buffs defeated

fifth-ranked Washington in Boulder to go 3-1-1 and finally were about to play,

in their minds, a cupcake.

Missouri.

Careful what you wish for

The standard line about Mizzou football was: sleeping giant. Based in Columbia,

the university had St. Louis to the east and Kansas City to the west, and if the

Tigers could just recruit the in-state talent, look out.

They'd had their moments throughout the years. They played in the 1960 and

'61 Orange Bowls -- losing to Georgia, beating Navy -- and a guard on those

teams was none other than Bill McCartney. Later, Dan Devine took the Tigers to

the '70 Orange Bowl. Under Al Onofrio, they upset Bear Bryant's Alabama in '75

and John Robinson in his USC debut in '76. Under Warren Powers in '78, they

shut out Joe Montana 3-0 at Notre Dame. Always a big tease, they would turn

around and lose to Iowa State.

By 1989, after five straight losing seasons, Missouri brought in a coach from the

University of Texas at El Paso, Bob Stull, who had a lot of newfangled ideas. He

had a scheme called the jailbreak, where he would spread the field with his

receivers, empty his backfield, and throw the ball underneath to anyone and

everyone. If it sounded like a precursor to today's spread offense, it was,

although a lot of people turned up their noses and dismissed it, run-happy

Colorado being one of them.

Still, Missouri's coaches persevered. They had a young Andy Reid, now the

Philadelphia Eagles' coach, tutoring the offensive line. They had a young Dirk

Koetter, now the Jacksonville Jaguars' offensive coordinator, calling the plays.

And they had Stull, a former University of Washington assistant, who had

learned from coach Don James never to act rattled on the sideline.

Despite a 2-9 season in '89, Stull was expecting a quantum leap in 1990. At

both UMass and UTEP -- his previous coaching stops -- he'd had breakthrough

seasons in his second year. And early in 1990, his Tigers torched 21st-ranked

Arizona State 30-9 in Columbia, creating unfettered optimism. Their record was

2-2, and with Colorado coming in to Faurot Field next, on Oct. 6, the Show-Me

State's fan base couldn't help but say it: We're going to show 'em.

Brian Tirpak

Missouri coach Bob Stull was ready for Colorado, prepared with a spread-style offense and a 2-2 record.

Turf wars

The day broke hot and dry, which had the Missouri grounds crew reaching for its

hoses. In most cases you would never, ever water an artificial field before a

game, but this wasn't just any field. This was an Oregon field.

The official name was Omniturf, and it was ideal for teams that played in

perpetual rain: the University of Oregon and so on. In theory, the turf's sand

base would absorb water and give the field better traction on damp days, which

was enticing, and not only in the Pacific Northwest. The Midwest had its own

share of quagmires, and Missouri -- the last team in the Big Eight with a grass

field -- proudly installed the turf in August 1985.

There was a caveat, though: On steamy hot days, the field resembled an ice

rink. Not only did it become rock-hard -- tearing skin off players' elbows -- but

the footing also was treacherous. In the early fall, the Missouri heat could be

numbing, and the grounds crew learned to water the fake field before games

and practices to cool it and soften it.

Colorado had won games on the field in 1986 and 1988 with little distress or

fanfare. But now, in pregame warm-ups, CU staffers felt the Omniturf was more

coarse and unstable than they had remembered. "Of course, I had dress shoes

on," says former Buff Dave Logan, who was broadcasting the game that day.

"But I was struck by the lack of stickiness of the turf. I mean, everything was

very, very smooth. It wasn't a fast track."

Maybe the groundskeepers hadn't hosed the field long enough, or maybe the

82-degree heat was too stifling. But as the game began and Colorado began

revving up its option offense, wearing short-pronged cleats akin to basketball

sneakers, its players began to fall down. An irked McCartney asked an

equipment manager whether the team had brought longer cleats on the trip.

The answer was nope.

Nip and tuck

So that was the equalizer. Missouri's strong-armed quarterback Kent Kiefer had

touchdown throws of 19 and 49 yards in the first quarter alone. On a slippery

field, it's always the receivers who have the advantage because they know

where they're headed. Still, turf or no turf, CU was able to counter with a 29-

yard touchdown run by Bieniemy and a 68-yard TD sprint by Pritchard.

At halftime, the score was 14-all. Mizzou climbed ahead 21-17 on a 13-yard run

by Mike Jones, the future Rams linebacker who would save Super Bowl XXXIV

by tackling the Titans' Kevin Dyson at the goal line. Colorado answered with a

70-yard TD pass from Charles Johnson to Pritchard, and suddenly Missouri's

defensive players were the ones complaining about the slick turf. "You couldn't

make any quick cuts," Stull says. "Colorado was slipping every time they

pitched on the option; they had a hard time making corners. But so did we. We

had a hard time rushing the passer."

The teams exchanged field goals, and it began to look as if the last team to

have the ball would win. With 2:32 left in the game, Missouri dialed up its

jailbreak screen, and receiver Damon Mays darted 38 yards for the score. The

Tigers led 31-27. They then kicked off to the Buffaloes, who were called for a

clip on the return. The referee from Arkansas City, Kan., J.C. Louderback,

marched the ball back to the CU 12-yard line. When he announced the penalty

over his mike, his voice seemed strong and true; no one gave him a second

thought. He and his crew had been anonymous all day, just how Louderback

liked it. There's nothing a ref loves more than dreamy anonymity.

Strangers

The truth was, it was remarkable that the officiating crew was holding it

together. It was a split crew, meaning the seven of them didn't work together

every week, and a few hadn't even been introduced until 10 that morning. They

hailed from Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Missouri, and although that might

not seem terribly significant, the head linesman -- Ron Demaree from Jenks,

Okla. -- remembers worrying that there might be a "major" lack of

communication that day. "Because you don't know what's inside a guy's head,

where they're going to be on the field," Demaree says. Demaree felt that a

great officiating crew had to know one another like the back of their hands, and

he meant that literally.

Brian Tirpak

Most officials say it's never good to take your eyes off the field.

Something as simple as changing the down marker from first to second down

had to be done somewhat blindly. The protocol would be for Louderback to

quickly signal second down to Demaree, and Demaree would follow up by

signaling second down -- sometimes behind his head -- to the man holding the

down marker. "I will not 100 percent of the time turn and look at the box man,"

Demaree says. "Because you could have players coming to the line of

scrimmage, ready for the snap. And just my philosophy was that's not a good

thing to do -- turn your back to the field."

For that reason, Demaree always made sure to visit with the head of the chain

crew before the game just to let him know how he was going to handle a

change of downs. It was just another minor but necessary detail because the

chain gang is not part of the officiating crew. It's hired by the home team, which

means it's also usually nuts for the home team.

But on this day, it was the other refs Demaree was wary about. He had worked

with the man on the down marker countless times before -- Rich Montgomery, a

Missouri alumnus, a hopeless Tigers fan but a conscientious worker. He knew

Montgomery was the type of person who would have his back.

Because, after all, Montgomery was an insurance man.

Spike TV

The final drive began with Johnson shuffling into the Colorado huddle, 88 yards

from the goal line, telling his teammates they all would be prancing in the end

zone soon. He had started the game ahead of injured Hagan, and for a relative

neophyte, he had a lot of nerve.

Early in the drive, he faced a third-and-11 at his own 23 and found Rico Smith

for 22 yards over the middle. Johnson exhaled. Now he was certain the Buffs

would score. Bieniemy ran for 7 and 15 yards, and with 36 seconds left, they

were on the Tigers' 9-yard line. On the Missouri sideline, Stull could tell his

defense was winded. He quickly called timeout, to give his players a water

break if nothing else.

On the field, Louderback noticed that the clock operator had run two extra

seconds off the scoreboard. While Stull and McCartney were drawing up

strategy, Louderback ordered the clock reset to 38 seconds. No one thought

anything of it; it was just two lousy ticks.

After the timeout, Johnson ran a play fake, rolled right and saw his tight end,

Jon Boman, in the absolute clear near the sideline.

Tim DeFrisco/Getty Images

As the team's starting center, it was Jay Leeuwenburg's job to know the down and distance each play.

"Anybody in America would've scored," McCartney says.

"We all finally breathed a sigh of relief -- and then a gust of wind or something,

he just fell," Buffs center Leeuwenburg remembers.

"I thought, 'Oh well, we still got a chance -- maybe the gods are on our side

today,'" Montgomery says.

The insurance man rushed to the 3-yard line to set his down marker to first

down. But the rest of his chain crew disappeared. For safety reasons, the Big

Eight had instituted a new rule in goal-to-go situations, forcing the men carrying

the chains to move off the sideline. Only the box man would remain. Rich

Montgomery was on his own.

Johnson rushed to the line to spike the ball with 28 seconds left. Here was

another new rule, one that allowed quarterbacks the chance simply to throw the

ball down on the turf to stop the clock. In previous years, they'd had to throw

the ball out of bounds or at a receiver's feet to stop the clock. Some of the CU-

Missouri referees had never seen this done before.

After the spike, Louderback signaled Demaree for the change of down, then

Demaree signaled Montgomery. The two key officials, Louderback and Demaree,

had caught it. They both moved the rubber bands on their hands from their

forefinger to their second finger, signifying second down. Rubber bands were

the way most referees kept track of which down it was. But not every official

had a rubber band that day, and not all of them -- especially the refs on the

defensive side of the ball -- had clearly seen the spike. Some thought that the

ball had been inadvertently kicked and reset; that happens all the time. "We did

change the down, but everyone's mind didn't let it change," Louderback says.

On second down from the 3, with still the 28 seconds left, Johnson handed off

to Bieniemy, who surged up the gut to the 1-yard line. Colorado's fullback, the

230-pound George Hemingway, got in Louderback's face to say, "Timeout!

Timeout! Time! Time!" Louderback remembers the fullback just howling,

remembers being startled by it. But he snapped out of it and walked to the CU

bench to alert McCartney that it was his final timeout.

Problem was, he forgot to signal third down to Demaree. And Demaree, to this

day, isn't quite sure what he did next. He thinks he signaled third down behind

his head to Montgomery, that he just took care of the matter himself. But

Montgomery swears he never saw it. Instead, he had been peering across the

field at Louderback on the CU sideline, waiting for Louderback's signal, a signal

that never came. And then Montgomery's attention began to drift.

Because behind the CU bench, a man was dying.

Fatal excitement

That whole last drive, the crowd had been on its feet, frenetic. Throw in the 80-

degree heat, and someone was bound to be overcome.

Cheryl Hines, a Missouri fan sitting on the 40-yard line, 22 rows up from the

Colorado bench, remembers the stadium noise reaching a pinnacle after

Boman's catch-and-slip. Then, after Johnson's first-down spike, she says she

felt a forceful bump on her shoulder. A heavyset man sitting behind her had

collapsed and was now unconscious in her lap. She realized right away that he

was having a heart attack. Two of her friends seated nearby were in medical

school and began performing CPR. Someone rushed to the field to alert an EMT.

That whole section of the stadium had to get up and move to give the

emergency workers room. Montgomery watched it all.

The heart attack victim was transported to the Faurot Field track during the

timeout, as the EMTs performed CPR. "I'd like to say I wasn't distracted,"

Montgomery says. "But even most of the Colorado players were turned around

looking."

Normally, if a referee doesn't signal a change of down, Montgomery will ask the

head linesman what to do; by rule, he can't switch downs on his own. But,

perhaps because of the heart attack, he failed to ask. And because of a whole

different sort of mayhem on the CU sideline, Louderback was just as much in

the dark.

When the referee rushed over to tell McCartney he was out of timeouts -- with

18 seconds left in the game -- the coach looked at the down marker and the

scoreboard, which both mistakenly still said second down. At that point, Coach

Mac waved Louderback over to tell him the Buffaloes were going to run three

plays -- a run up the middle, a spike and then another run. He wanted to make

certain that Louderback didn't allow Missouri defenders, after the first play, to

sit on the CU ball carrier, preventing the Buffaloes from lining up for the spike in

time. Johnson says he heard Louderback tell Mac, "You'll be fine."

But that little conversation unintentionally seemed to cement in Louderback's

mind that it was still second down. McCartney had lost track himself, and by

telling the referee he was running three more plays, Louderback, a math

teacher during the week, lost count, as well.

Out on the field, meanwhile, head linesman Demaree just assumed Montgomery

had switched to third down. He swears he moved his rubber band over to his

third finger, but he didn't turn to look at the scoreboard or the box to make

sure, and none of the other officials -- possibly discombobulated by the spike --

corrected a thing. To everyone on the playing field, it was still second-and-goal

with 18 seconds left.

But behind Montgomery on the sideline, a 7-foot man began to go bonkers.

The voices that roared

They weren't playing this game in a vacuum. Up in the TV booth, the color

analyst Dave Logan, a former Buff and Cleveland Browns receiver, was

squinching his eyes and questioning the down marker. He told his broadcast

partner, Les Shapiro, that he thought it was third down, not second. But he

didn't press it, saying that it was a moot point, that there wasn't enough time to

run three plays anyway.

Over in the Missouri radio booth, a popular KMOX announcer, Bill Wilkerson,

was a tad more pointed and began to percolate the ire of any Missouri fan who

was tuned in: "Second-and-goal at the 1. That's what the stick says. I thought

it was third-and-goal. It's got to be third-and-goal. The stick says second. And

so does the scoreboard. Apparently, I'm wrong; it says second-and-goal."

Wilkerson couldn't run this thought by his broadcast partner -- former Mizzou

basketball player Tom Dore -- because Dore already had headed down to the

sideline for the postgame coach's show. But 7-foot Dore did have a headset on

and could hear Wilkerson's ruminations. So Dore began to jabber at

Montgomery, who was just 2 yards away: "Hey, it's third down, not second

down," Dore claims he said. "You forgot to change the down marker. You

missed this!"

Montgomery claims he didn't hear Dore, but the fact is, confusion was starting

to build all over Faurot Field. As the CU timeout was expiring, McCartney pulled

all the Buffaloes players together to explain that they were running three plays:

a run, a spike and a run. All of them nodded except Leeuwenburg.

As the starting center -- and team brain -- it was Leeuwenburg's job to always

know the down and distance. So he raised his hand to say, "I don't think we can

do that, Coach. I think that's going to be fourth down when we spike the ball."

McCartney's response: "Shut up and play center, Leeuwenburg."

What was the center supposed to do? McCartney's veins were popping out; the

coach was adamant it was second down. The center figured that the spike must

have been blown dead or that the timeout had come before the second-down

snap. How could all these professionals be wrong? How could two sidelines, a

box man and seven refs all swing and miss?

So, he just shut up and snapped the ball.

Six seconds of pure frustration

After the timeout, Colorado got its second second down. Johnson again handed

off to Bieniemy, who dove for the end zone but was stopped short at the 1. The

clock was still running; CU was out of timeouts; and, up in the booth, Wilkerson

was howling:

"No! No! No! He did not get in. Tremendous charge. Tremendous charge. 9, 8, 7

… the clock has been stopped. Why? Why is the clock stopped? 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 …"

Just as McCartney had hoped, Louderback and his crew had halted the clock for

six full seconds to let the players unpile. The Missouri bench was incensed; the

Tigers could see no clear evidence of their players holding Bieniemy or Buffaloes

linemen down. They felt the game clock should've expired. But Johnson now

had time to take the snap and down the ball … with two seconds left, the two

seconds Louderback had restored what seemed like years earlier.

Pandemonium set in. Fans were crowding the sideline, ready to yank down a

goalpost. There would be one final play. Or would there?

Three feet behind Montgomery, Dore was now beside himself, shouting at the

insurance man: "Hey, it's fifth down! It is fifth down! It's Missouri's ball! They

spiked the ball on fourth down! You have to stop this game! There are only four

downs in football! This is fifth down!"

Montgomery says he heard nothing as he stared straight ahead. "I bleed black

and gold," he says, "and I guarantee if I'd known about it, I would've said

something." He claims that the Missouri fans who were creeping toward the field

distracted him. He says he was worried about getting trampled. He says the

crowd noise was palpable.

But the fact is, the crowd was chanting "Fifth down," too. The fans were

bellowing it at the refs, and they were hollering it at the Missouri coaches, who

seemed perplexed themselves. Caught up in the moment, Stull had lost track of

the downs. But Andy Reid and another assistant, Steve Telander, began

grumbling that the spike might have come on fourth down. The Tigers' backup

quarterback, a 4.0 student named Phil Johnson, also tugged on the coach's

sleeve, saying, "Fifth down." But no one seemed indignant about it. No one was

sprinting on the field, waving his arms, kidnapping the football.

The play clock for down No. 5 was winding down, and Stull contemplated calling

his last timeout to sort it all out. But first he looked down toward Montgomery,

one of the most rabid Tigers fans he knew. Montgomery's personalized license

plate read "BGTIGR." If anyone was going to protect Stull's interests, it would

be Montgomery. "He was my guy," Stull says. "I mean, you cut his arms, little

Tigers run out, OK? But he's standing there. There doesn't seem to be any

problem with him."

Dore remembers that same helpless look on Stull's face, remembers thinking

Stull was looking down to him for advice. Dore hosted Stull's postgame coach's

show. They were pals, too. But Dore didn't know what to do or say. He wanted

to flash a timeout signal to the coach, but he was frozen. "Bob's mouth was

open, his eyes very wide," Dore says. "But I'm sure in Bob's mind it was, 'These

guys are not going to make this kind of mistake. This can't happen.'"

Stull's split-second decision was to forgo the timeout. He was worried that if he

called time and was wrong about the number of downs, Colorado would be able

to set up a well-conceived play and score easily. Or if he ran onto the field and

waved his arms hysterically, he was concerned about getting a penalty, moving

CU half the distance closer to the goal line. But if he made the Buffaloes just run

a play, with a backup quarterback staring into a hostile crowd … maybe that

was the ticket. He told his defensive coaches, "Even if it's 10th down, we've got

to stop 'em. Let's stop 'em."

And maybe they did.

Did he or didn't he?

Who has a fifth-down play in his playbook? Colorado didn't. But the Buffaloes'

huddle -- all but a suspicious Leeuwenburg -- still thought it was fourth down,

and they were going to run their bread and butter: the option.

The play was named "38 Block H," and it called for Johnson to either pitch wide

to Bieniemy or improvise himself. But he was frightened of the turf, didn't want

the game to end with another catastrophic slip. So after taking the snap, he

took a trio of baby steps to the right and burrowed straight for the end zone. He

took a direct hit, twisted and started falling back-first to the turf. He seemed to

land on his shoulder blades, a hair short of the goal line, with the ball on his

chest. Under that scenario, it's no touchdown. But, as he hit the turf, Johnson

had the wherewithal to arch his lower back and reach the ball over the goal line.

Photos taken by the Columbia Daily Tribune showed him short of the end zone.

But photos taken by Sports Illustrated showed him conceivably in. Video was

inconclusive, and there wasn't instant replay back then, anyway. What there

was … was Ron Demaree.

Brian Tirpak

Although other newspaper photos showed that Charles Johnson appeared to be tackled short of the goal line, this photo showed him continuing to stretch for the end zone.

At first, not one official on the field signaled touchdown. But Demaree, standing

a few feet in front of Montgomery on the Missouri sideline, ran three … four …

five … six steps in, found the ball over the goal line and threw his arms up.

Right away, Demaree was nearly tackled by an angry Missouri defensive back,

Harry Colon. After that, it was a free-for-all. A mob of Missouri fans rushed the

end zone -- half of them to tear down the goalposts, thinking they'd won, the

other half to tell Demaree, "That was fifth down!"

Demaree heard them loud and clear, and his mind began to race. After the

second second down, he had properly moved his rubber band to his fourth

finger, meaning he should've known Johnson's ensuing spike was the last down.

But before the spike, he had seen Louderback signal third down. He had noticed

third down on the scoreboard and on Montgomery's box. "So I pulled my rubber

band back to three, thinking I was the only one wrong out of the bunch,"

Demaree says. "I just didn't trust my rubber band."

Of course, now that the fans were yelling fifth down, Demaree went scrambling

to find Louderback for clarification. And Louderback wasn't sure about anything

now. Immediately after the touchdown, Louderback says a "little old man" had

accosted him at midfield, saying, "You screwed this one up! You allowed them

five downs!" Louderback told him, "Get the heck out of here," but it panicked

him nonetheless.

When he and Demaree spoke on the field after the touchdown, Demaree said,

"J.C., I think we've got a fifth-down situation here, or at least the students do."

"What do you show?" Louderback asked.

"I'm showing four, not a five," Demaree said. "But I could be wrong."

By now, Colorado and Missouri were already in their locker rooms, thinking the

final score was 33-31. The TV broadcast was already off the air. But in the

middle of Faurot Field, Louderback was standing with his six other officials,

taking a poll. "Do any of you guys recall us allowing too many downs?" he

asked. "We better get this right, or it's going to get ugly."

They compared rubber bands but Demaree says not one of them could confirm

there'd been five downs. The two spikes had played tricks with their minds.

Louderback went to a sideline phone to call the Big Eight observer in the press

box, but nobody answered because the observer had been on an elevator to the

field during the whole five-down sequence. The liaison to the TV booth was no

help, either, because the broadcast was over and he had packed up his headset.

Louderback was on his own.

The ref never called the press box because he says it wasn't protocol. But if he

had, he would've received some colorful responses. Writers and sports

information directors seemed to be on top of the mistake; Colorado's Dave Plati

had shouted an F-bomb when Johnson spiked the ball on the real fourth down.

And when Buffaloes offensive coordinator Gerry DiNardo stopped by the CU

radio booth, where Plati was sitting, the coach asked, "How many plays did we

just run there?"

"I think five," Plati said.

Eventually, after close to 20 minutes, a pale Louderback made a decision. He

wanted the teams back on the field.

Keith Simonsen

Angry Missouri fans gather on the field after the fifth down.

Misery (and Missouri) loves company

Leeuwenburg, in front of his locker, was already ripping tape off his wrists. He

had bumped into DiNardo in the locker room and had asked the coordinator,

"Gerry, did you know?"

DiNardo, having already bumped into Plati, answered, "Jay, it's my job to

know." Which is when Leeuwenburg realized he'd been right all along.

A few minutes later, the Buffaloes learned of Louderback's request. He was

ordering them back onto the field for an extra-point attempt. The fifth down

Louderback still wasn't sure about. But in college football, a team can score two

points if it returns a blocked PAT for a touchdown. So he waved both squads

back.

Stull had spoken to Dore by then and had been informed again of the possible

fifth down. But no one on the Mizzou staff could document this to Louderback

on paper. Demaree says he asked the Tigers' bench whether it had a staffer

who charted plays. He was told it did, but Demaree says the kid had been

caught up in the tension of the final drive and had stopped keeping track.

Even if there had been a fifth down, Louderback was under the impression that

Missouri would've had to dispute it before the actual play. He did not believe it

was a correctable error under NCAA rules. And this was all part of what he

relayed to Stull, who, true to his Don James roots, stayed relatively under

control. The fact was, he still wasn't 100 percent certain of the fifth down.

Former Colorado center Jay Leeuwenburg.

"I tried to keep my composure because we didn't know for sure," Stull says.

"Some of our coaches and players had argued the point before the fifth-down

play, and then we went back and challenged it even more after. But nobody had

the answer, and the officials were still convinced they were right. My point to

them was, 'You better be right because if you're not, it's not gonna be pretty.'"

It was ugly, all right. McCartney told his offensive unit to go back out there and

kneel on the ball, to not even risk a blocked kick. So 11 Colorado players

walked back onto a football field that was covered in hate. "That was the most

insane one play of football I've ever been a part of," Leeuwenburg says of the

extra-point play. "We had the 11 starters on our offense go out; everyone else

stayed in the locker room. And at this point, we knew we had gotten five

downs. After we'd taken a knee and were running off the field, we had a circle

of police around us, and there was a guy that came up and he was so furious,

he had something in his hand. I don't know if it was a bottle or a battery, but he

was trying to go for one of our players and knocked a cop out. I can remember

four cops just beating the hell out of this guy. It scared me to death. I thought

there was truly a chance I wouldn't make it back to the locker room."

On his way off the field, Montgomery crossed paths with Louderback. They were

moving quickly -- escorted by police -- and Louderback told Montgomery,

"They're saying we had an extra down."

"No way," Montgomery answered. "No way."

In his postgame news conference, McCartney only exacerbated matters. Rather

than admit that a fifth-down scoring play was a regrettable error, he ranted

about the field conditions, saying Missouri should've alerted his staff ahead of

time so it could've brought the proper cleats. He said he wasn't going to forfeit

because had he known it was third down during that timeout, he'd have called

just two plays -- a pass and then a run. But considering he was a Missouri

alumnus, considering he'd been a sore winner, considering he was founder of

the moral religious group, Promise Keepers, he was crucified nationally. Called a

hypocrite, and worse.

It was a somber day all around. The unidentified man who'd suffered the heart

attack died. Fans pelted the referees' locker room with rocks. Demaree heard

definitive word about the fifth down while driving to St. Louis that night on

business, listening to Wilkerson's postgame show. He ended up getting a death

threat at home. He became depressed. An NFL official actually had been in the

stands that day evaluating him, but he never heard from the league again. The

next day, he offered to resign.

Louderback drove home to Kansas after the game and didn't arrive until close to

midnight. His wife had taped the game, and as he watched the final seconds, he

realized he was going to live in infamy. Why hadn't anyone helped him? Why

hadn't the other refs realized his mistake? Why hadn't the Missouri coaches

caught on? Why did that tight end have to slip when he could've waltzed into

the end zone? Why didn't the Big Eight observer stay in the press box? Why was

there that new rule removing other members of the chain gang from the

sideline, leaving Montgomery there by himself? Why … why … had he put those

two harmless seconds back on the clock in the middle of the final drive? That

last one ate at him. Fifth down had taken place with two seconds left. If he had

never changed the clock from 36 to 38 seconds -- when no one was looking --

fifth down never would have happened.

As for Montgomery, he drove home to Kansas City with his oldest son, Jeff, a

former Missouri walk-on who was in his first year on the chain crew. They were

pulling onto I-70 West, about to leave Columbia, when they, too, heard

Wilkerson recount the five downs. Rich felt sick. It dawned on him that a

Missouri man had helped cost Missouri a game, that "BGTIGR" had hurt the

place he loved the most.

Montgomery pulled over, got out of the car and threw up.

Life goes on

Colorado didn't lose again that season, and, in the Orange Bowl, it took a

rematch with Notre Dame to become co-national champion with Georgia Tech.

The Buffs were more than deserving. They had future NFL players such as

Pritchard, Alfred Williams, Chad Brown and Deon Figures. They had played a

wicked schedule. They had blasted Nebraska by 15 points on the road. But they

also had been 1-for-1 on fifth-down conversions.

McCartney and his staff didn't want to hear that their title was tarnished, and

they continued to harbor resentment over the way they were portrayed. When

Mizzou came to Boulder the next season, the staff considered punting to the

Tigers on a third down -- "To say, 'Here's your friggin' down back,'" Plati says --

but instead simply pummeled them 55-7.

Clearly, the incident was still resonating. The entire fifth-down officiating crew

was suspended for a week, and, not long after, Demaree and Louderback --

who'd been 57 and 56, respectively, in 1990 -- reached the Big Eight

Conference's retirement age and were replaced. Demaree, whose regular job

was with the phone company, actually got transferred from Oklahoma to

Missouri at one point. "It wasn't easy living in Missouri as the 'fifth-down man,'"

he says. "But when I'm wrong, I'm wrong. If you screw up, you pay the piper."

Former Colorado coach Bill McCartney apologizes.

Louderback went on to officiate in Conference USA, got to do an Army-Navy

game. All in all, he had a stellar career. He had calmly refereed the infamous

1986 Oklahoma-Miami game, where police dogs were needed to quell a fight on

the field. He had never made excuses about the extra down. By and large, his

reputation hadn't been trashed.

It was actually Charles Johnson who ended up living the charmed life. He didn't

start another game that 1990 regular season, but replaced Hagan in the

ensuing Orange Bowl against Notre Dame and took home MVP honors after

leading the team to the winning touchdown. He later became a sports talk radio

host. As for Leeuwenburg, he wound up playing nine seasons in the NFL and,

predictably, became a third-grade teacher at a private school in Denver --

where he makes sure his students never lose count.

Stull never really recovered from the gaffe. Missouri won only two more games

in 1990 to finish 4-7, then followed with 3-7-1, 3-8 and 3-7-1 seasons. He knew

his offensive system worked (and his friend and fellow James disciple Gary

Pinkel would make it work at Mizzou years later). But not only did Missouri fire

Stull after the '93 season but it also fired the Omniturf with him.

The next Tigers coach, Larry Smith, wanted a grass field, and a Rolling Stones

concert at Faurot Field in September '94 helped the Mizzou administration raise

$100,000 to help pay for the sod. A sordid era was over, and Jeff Montgomery,

who had become a graduate assistant under Smith, asked whether he could

take a piece of the Omniturf home.

He gave it to his dad, who chuckled and had it framed. The truth was, Rich

Montgomery was carrying on. Jeff says he thought his dad might not be invited

back to run the chain crew, but the pink slip never came. Demaree and

Louderback had taken full responsibility, and Stull liked Montgomery and had

never held a grudge. Montgomery returned for the 1991 season, and began to

look back at Oct. 6, 1990, with a wan smile.

He asked Stull to autograph a fifth-down poster he had, and the coach -- who is

now the AD at UTEP -- signed it, "Rich, did you know?" Montgomery took the

same poster to a Promise Keepers event and introduced himself to McCartney.

"I was the box man for the fifth-down game," Montgomery said.

"You?" McCartney asked.

The coach signed the poster: "They tend to even out." But as the years passed,

McCartney softened … and softened. And now he sits in his Westminster, Colo.,

home, apologizing, wishing he could take back all his indignation for the

Omniturf. "I went to school at Missouri, OK?" McCartney says. "I'm an alum,

OK? And all of this has tarnished that. That is a regret that I'll carry with me to

my grave. I wasn't gracious in victory. When you win, be humble. You know? So

I say this to all the people of Missouri, I'm sorry for the way I behaved. I

behaved with immaturity. I should've handled that graciously, and I regret I

didn't uphold the tradition of being a Missouri Tiger better in that time of

struggle."

Twenty long years later, the one who seems most at peace is Montgomery. At

his State Farm insurance agency, he'll give friends a tour of the Wall of Shame

in his bathroom: the signed poster … the slab of Omniturf … the photo of

Charles Johnson … the specially made fifth-down marker.

Maybe it's easier for him because he has a game almost every Saturday.

Twenty long years later, Montgomery is still carrying the downs marker at the

University of Missouri … joined on the chain crew by his two sons, Jeff and Mark.

All the head linesmen know Rich Montgomery by name. They all say, "No fifth

downs" in their pregame meetings, and to this day, Montgomery and his two

sons meet in the end zone before every Faurot Field kickoff to fist-bump and

say, "Break a leg. Let's keep it at four."

But just to be certain, Montgomery uses a magic marker to keep track of every

play.

Insurance.

(Article reprint courtesy of Tom Friend, who is a senior writer at ESPN.com)

Picture of the week

Football Friends….

(yeah….even tough guys can be friends with their moms!!)

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