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Thanksgiving Football Thoughts
















With all due respect to the Pilgrims, to the traditional sentiments of harvest time, and to expressions of gratitude, both cosmic and local, Thanksgiving Day for some of us constitutes chiefly the center of the football season -- its culmination for high schools, and a good time for the college games that serve as the natural lead-in to the wonders of the bowl-game season. Have you ever noticed, after all, how much a turkey looks like a football?



My personal thoughts in this regard this year turn to my alma mater, Marist College, home of the Red Foxes.



Their football season is over and it wasn't a resounding success. Their 11 games yielded a 4-7 record. But on the last of those games, November 15th, they kicked the butts of the Davidson Wildcats, with stand-out performances from their seniors. Of course, it sounds like a natural rivalry, a canine wild creature against a feline analog.


One senior, running back Emmanuel Onakoya, scored two touchdowns in the first quarter. Another, running back Atiq Lucas, also scored a TD while gaining 74 yards on 16 carries.


On the defensive side, a linebacker, Paul Sakowski, also a senior, recorded eight tackles on the day, a team record.



But what about Thanksgiving Weekend? I have to shift my focus always from my alma mater to say anything about that.



The University of Connecticut Huskies are playing this weekend -- Saturday, November 29, they'll play Memphis in the Liberty Bowl, at Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. It'll be on ESPN. 


As to their won-loss record, Connecticut should envy Marist! The Huskies have only 2 Ws to 8 Ls overall. They are 1-5 in their conference.


Tim Boyle, a QB, has spent most of the season on the bench. He got his chance as the starting QB last Saturday, against Cincinnati. The team lost but, according to the New Haven Register, Boyle acquitted himself well.


Still, what about Thanksgiving Day itself. Today! What's my rooting interest going to be?


Georgia Tech will be visiting Georgia. My irrational preference is with the Engineers, a/k/a the Yellow Jackets. Why do they need two names? Don't know.  The latter is the usual reference from the animal kingdom, the former refers to the nature of the school behind the players. but, hey, the heart knows what it knows.


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