Further proof Pee-Wee football is ridiculous

Sports parents are a rare breed of douchebags...

Epic Video: Mission Football Homecoming 2010

Here's a video I took from Mission's Homecoming football game last Friday...

Pink cat or pink panther?

I posted earlier about how the Sounders FC are going pink this Saturday, well some people just shouldn't have pets. Let alone pink ones.

Sounders go pink on Saturday

Each October the NFL and its 32 teams "go pink" for breast cancer awareness month. It now seems that the close connection between the Seattle Seahawks and the Seattle Sounders FC has allowed the Sounders to follow suit.

RENTON , Wash. - The Sounders FC will dedicate Saturday's match vs. Toronto FC to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research and to launch activities to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m.

The match will be played with a commemorative pink adidas match ball, all players will be wearing pink ribbon patches on their jerseys, pink adidas sweat bands and utilize pink sideline towels provided by Gatorade.

I'll be out at the Sounders FC match on Saturday and take some pictures for JustSON. So check back in.

Radio Flyer Wagon car

Wow. I always thought there was lots of cool things to do in Alaska. Apparently this couple did everything and decided to make a real attention grabbing car.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A Valley couple took a childhood memory and turned it into a retirement project. Now, they have a Radio Flyer car to drive around town in.

Fred Keller and Judy Foster worked on the car for 11 months, and finished in August of this year, and their ride has been turning heads.

The base of the wagon is a 1976 Mazda pickup truck that Foster inherited from her dad.

Here's the wagon in action:

The JustSON mailbag

We've been getting a number of emails here at Just South of North asking us questions. So I figured I'd take some time to answer a few of those emails.

Q:Is Brandon really afraid of bears? If so, he's a turd. -Yogi, Jellystone Park

Yes Yogi, Brandon is really afraid of bears. Deathly afraid actually. Thank goodness winter is coming to Montana soon and all the bears will go into hibernation. He hasn't slept in weeks.

Q: I know that Casey recently rode his bike down the Oregon coast, if Brandon had to ride his bike how far do you think he'd make it? -Lance, Texas

To be honest Lance I'm not sure that Brandon knows how to ride a bike. But for the sake of an answer let's pretend he does. I'd have to say he'd make it to the nearest Starbucks to Polson. No matter the distance.

Q: I used to read your "Eastern Rangers" articles in The Easterner. I know that you guys once tried out for the dance team at Eastern. I'd like to make it on that team. Any suggestions? -Michael, Ireland

Well Michael, if you read the article then you know that I dance like someone who just lit their foot on fire. Brandon however was a regular John Travolta. So I'd suggest you watch Saturday Night Fever. Oh, and Grease.

Q: You guys seem to always be up to something fun. Are you planning any adventures for the weekend? -Luke, Canada

This weekend Brandon and I are heading to the National Amtgard Championships with our guild. What's amtgard. Oh boy am I glad you asked.



That does it for this edition of the Just South of North Mailbag. Until next time keep those emails coming!

Man wins lotto, twice

I saw this and thought, "Seriously!?!?! I can't even win it once and this dude wins it twice! Well poop."

The odds against winning $1 million in the Lottery: Astronomical. How about doing it twice?

It happened to a man from Bonne Terre, Mo., Missouri Lottery officials said Tuesday. Ernest Pullen, 57, won $1 million with a "100 Million Dollar Blockbuster" Scratchers ticket in June. And this month, he won $2 million with a "Mega MONOPOLY" Scratchers ticket.

Pullen, a retired military man who was working at the help desk for a telecommunications company before retiring after the first lottery win, said he considers himself to be a "lucky guy."

Lucky guy is right. Well, we at the Just South of North offices didn't win. So we'll enjoy our dinner of saltine crackers and tap water and wait for the next drawing.

Seahawks green socks

I just saw this over at the facebook page for the Seattle Seahawks. Now what if the Hawks wore their green jerseys AND these green socks? Epic.

DE Raheem Brock rocking neon green knee-high socks at practice today.

Nosy news reporter

This is the reason Brandon went into print journalism rather than television.

The Puyallup Fair

We went to the fair today. It was a blast. I'll throw up some photos in a bit.

In the meantime, this is what it was like the last time Brandon went to the fair. This is him and his Aunt Janice on the slingshot ride.

Fastest. Pitch. Ever.

Ever recorded on radar in a major league baseball game. That is. Although judging from black and white photos of overweight pitchers in the early 1900s and also factoring in that there were really no relief pitchers until the past 30 years - guys had to pace themselves - (That's a guess so if you're really a baseball nerd and want to correct me about the first closer in 1949... just go back to your mom's basement and spare us all the embarrassment) I'm gonna say that this guy has thrown the most heat in a major league baseball game. Ever.

SAN DIEGO – Aroldis Chapman(notes) was summoned from the bullpen one batter too late to make a difference in the game. No matter. The 22-year-old Cincinnati Reds left-hander made do by making history Friday night, throwing the fastest pitch recorded in a major league game, a 105-mph fastball.

That's pretty insane, to put it all in perspective, that's a whole ten miles faster than the average Canadian driving through the state of Montana in their RV. Wow! 

Although I think that perhaps Chapman might have some competition...

I believe that Chapman's pitch is also 90 m.p.h. faster than Jamie Moyer's fastball.

Photos from Mission-Thompson Falls

Mission is for real. They improved to 3-1 on the season and 1-1 in conference after a 40-13 victory over Thompson Falls last night in St. Ignatius. Their bruising rushing attack and stout defense was on full display. Their crowd was excited for Homecoming. Their sideline was bursting with excited kids. In other words... wow. Here's some photos I took from the game...

People's Coast Classic videos

Here's the week of the People's Coast Classic in videos taken by the Northern Rangers. Thank you again to all who donated to the Arthritis Foundation. As at team we raised more that $7,500! Thank you again! Hope you enjoy.

(BTW Day 5 is probably my favorite)

Day 1: Astoria to Garibaldi



Day 2: Garibaldi to Lincoln City



Day 3: Lincoln City to Yachats



Day 4: Yachats to North Bend



Day 5: North Bend to Port Orford



Day 6: Port Orford to Brookings

50 Cent is a hard-core mofo

That would be rapper 50 Cent with a dog who's wearing a pink cast. Casey would be proud.

Ichiro sets hits record

Who's better, Pete Rose or Ichiro?

The Seattle Mariner just set a record for most consecutive 200-hit seasons and is now tied with Pete Rose for most 200-hit seasons.

In other words, barring a gambling scandal, I think it's safe to say Ichiro will have an entire wing dedicated to him at the Baseball Hall of Fame.

TORONTO -- Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki became the first player with 10 straight 200-hit seasons Thursday, breaking his record with a single to center in the fifth inning of the Mariners' game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Ichiro Suzuki now has 200-plus hits in all 10 of his MLB seasons. He's tied with Pete Rose for the most 200-hits seasons in MLB history.

Suzuki, whose 200 hits are the most in the majors, closed in on the mark with a two-out double to left off Blue Jays right-hander Shawn Hill in the third.

He wasted no time in setting the record, lining a single up the middle on the first pitch he saw from Hill in the fifth.

His teammates came to the top step of the dugout to applaud and Suzuki tipped his cap as the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

Suzuki surpassed Willie Keeler with his ninth consecutive 200-hit season last year. Keeler's streak ran from 1894 to 1901.

Check out this graphic by ESPN about the most 200-hit seasons...

Most 200-Hit Seasons, MLB History
Ichiro Suzuki 10*
Pete Rose 10
Ty Cobb 9
Lou Gehrig 8
Willie Keeler 8
Paul Waner 8

Ty Cobb? Lou Gehrig? Serious? That's the kind of company Ichiro is in right now. Wait, no, that's the company that Ichiro has beaten now. Wow.

Katy Perry causes Sesame Street controversy

So this Katy Perry segment was pulled from Sesame Street because of her cleavage.



Elmo looks way too happy in this segment, but other than that, what the heck is the big deal?

Headlines of awesomeness from Montana

Sometimes we get some wing-dingers here in Montana. Here is an awesome one.

Driver, 73, charged with felony

A 73-year-old woman has been charged with a felony in Flathead County District Court after allegedly causing two automobile crashes in three days.

Janet Vornbrock is being held in the county jail on a $25,000 bond. She was arrested on suspicion of criminal endangerment and booked into the Flathead County Detention Center Friday.

Vornbrock, who provided an Alberta driver’s license but has an address in Bigfork, allegedly crossed the centerline on U.S. 2 east of West Glacier and sideswiped a Saturn coupe on Friday afternoon.

According to court documents, Vornbrock was unable to tell responding Montana Highway Patrol personnel what had happened.

Trooper Steven Herman determined during a crash investigation that the driver of the Saturn had attempted to avoid the collision by moving as far right as possible, but still was struck by Vornbrock. The man driving the Saturn was transported to a hospital for treatment.

Two days prior to that collision, Vornbrock allegedly caused another two-vehicle crash, according to court documents. She again was unable to tell troopers what caused the collision.

“The defendant is on numerous medications,” Deputy County Attorney Lori Adams submitted in an affidavit filed Monday. “All of [Vornbrock’s] neighbors have tried to stop her from driving without success.”

I hate when the meds kick in.

Big Sky Standings

This brought a tear to my eye. The way the Big Sky should be.

Eastern Washington on the top.

And oh look. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down there at the bottom. Montana.

Respect the Red.

Paint the grass

Oregon State is heading to Boise State this weekend to take on the Broncos on the blue turf.

To help make the players used to playing on the different color of field, OSU has painted their practice field blue.

In order to make the green field look as blue as possible, it had to be painted white first. The Beavers won't practice on the field until Tuesday. Oregon State's scout team also will wear blue jerseys this week.

Perhaps Montana should try this same method in two years before coming back to Roos Field.

Looks like Casey is famous

Check out this photo taken by The Easterner, you might recognize the guy on the right.

How to tell if you're a journalist...

 
1. Your bar tab is more than your savings account.
2. Your idea of dressing formerly is a hoodie of your favorite baseball team.
3. The idea of a long day at the office is 15 hours and a stabbing.
4. Homeless people have nicer cars than you.
5. You read the paper and skip over the funnies.
6. You haven't had a day off since you lost your phone after St. Patricks Day and was found in a dumpster three days later going "that was an epic night."
7. Your side career is being a magician.
8. Instead of turning on the radio, you turn on the Police Scanner.
9. You have an Apollo Ohno story.
10. Your diet would make Homer Simpson laugh.

Eastern Washington beats Montana and history is made

Last night was nothing short of legendary.

It was the greatest moment in the history of the sporting world that I have ever had.

When I first heard that Eastern was putting in red turf I hoped I could be at the first game there. When I heard that the Eagles would be playing the rival Montana Grizzlies I knew I HAD to be there.

And there I was.

Our seats were in the front row of the endzone. I was so close that on the FIRST ever Eastern touchdown on the red turf of Roos Field I was right there. And on every replay.

I get a text from Brandon, "I just saw you on TV! You're part of Eastern history now! Every replay shows you!"

Here's the only video I could find of the touchdown. No Spokane station had it on their sites. Nice work Spokane media. Nice work.

Fast forward to 2:05. I'm the guy in the number 8 Eastern jersey jumping and screaming.



Where we were sitting we were surrounded by Montana fans. And I knew that I didn't like the Griz, but I must say that they have some of the most annoying fans I have ever met. From the drunk woman next to me who kept yelling "You're turf is pink! You're turf is pink!" to the guy who kept trying to rhyme insults with Inferno (the nickname of the red turf). He came up with such things as "Craperno." "Suckiterno." and even "Grizerno." Yeah, his IQ was off the charts.

As for the game the Eagles won. Staked claim to their new red turf. Introduced Roos Field the correct way with a win. And beat the hated Grizzlies for the first time in Cheney since 1991. That loss also was the first back-to-back losses in the regular season since 2002 for the Griz. Now Montana will only be able to watch as Eastern is sitting pretty for the rest of the Big Sky season.

At the end of the game, Montana had tried to lateral for a miracle. Once the play ended everyone stormed the field. We jumped on the Eagle logo in the middle of the field and chanted "Roos! Roos! Roos!"
I'd seen other university students around the nation be able to rush the fields of their schools but never thought I'd be able to be a part of it. Until last night.

The fans on the field got an unsportsmanlike conduct call which gave Montana another play. The cocky Griz fans still had something to talk about. Until the play happened. This play resulted in their quarterback getting killed and coughing up the ball. The defense scooped up the ball and scored for a final of 36-27.

Griz nation was stunned.

The fans rushed the field again.

It was everything that sports is meant to be. Two teams putting their hearts and souls into a game. One team winning. And history being made.

I'm glad I got to be a part of that history. Eastern Eagles!

Here's some pictures from the game:

God bless the Eags

Perhaps I should wait for the 40-dollar bar tab to calm down. Perhaps I should wait for the emotions to die down. Nope. Eff that. Let me tell you how I feel right now.

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

In the world of college football there is FBS and FCS. Something tells me that beating Montana is on the level of winning a national championship. The last time this happen, I spent eight hours in a car, driving to and from to Missoula and it wasn't quite a satisfying as this.

I was in their territory. I was in MONTANA. And the Eags still won. I prayed to god. I prayed to him that we would win. And we did. The Eags. Beat the best time in the Big Sky Conference. Five years in the making.

Some people might say that EWU doesn't matter that we don't really matter (although we still managed to win the national championship in newspapers... hmmmmmmmm) but it does. I can't tell you how many text messages I received. How many high fives I got. How great it felt to run down a street in Montana and say we won.

Listen, I remember when it was a big deal when Boston won the world series in 2004. It was huge. I wept. But this is bigger for me. For years I been saying... we can do this... we can beat Montana... we can show them that their dominance in FCS is as fleeting as the Eag fans that leave at halftime.

All it takes is a little bit of heart. And dammit... the Eags did it. And dammit, people from EWU loved it. My buddy Casey was texting me the entire second half of the game... THE GRIZ FANS OUR OUT OF IT.

They were. They didn't know how to handle it. It was amazing... It looked like this...

Casey ended up in the first EWU touchdown ever scored on the red turf highlight, check it out he actually jumps out in the endzone and tells all the other Griz fans to suck it. It was fantastic. On Montana TV to boot.

Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, was a great night for Eag fans. GREAT NIGHT. I hope you all sleep well because I will.

CHENEY IS AWESOME!

I love this town. If there is ever a town I want to settle down in it's either Cheney or Chewelah. Check this out on the eve of the Eastern-Montana game...

Apparently the Cheney parks department has decided to have a little fun with the grizz fans partying in Sutton park tomorrow. They have painted the grass in the grizz party area red and have even put white yard lines on it. I guess they will really be seeing red tomorrow!!! Way to go Cheney!!! I sure hope someone gets pictures—maybe a TV crew too?? Check it out. The painted area is on Washington Street and is currently fenced off by orange fencing!!

I can't say who this is from... muhahahahahahahaha

Further proof student government isn't that smart

ARE YOU KIDDING ME TEXAS TECH?
The last time some UT fans were in Lubbock they said Tech supporters cursed, spit and fought with them.

Fans bullying the competition have made the Tech stadium a tough place to play.

The student governments request is a big one to some Texas fans.

"I don't know if they'll be quiet, it's all about school spirit,” said UT student Nicole Berad.

Tech fans aren't being asked to be totally quiet; they can cheer the Red Raiders. But they are being asked to use what is called a "silent scare" when UT has the ball.

"If we get the stands to be completely silent that has got to be threatening to any team,” said Tech student government president Drew Graham.

No Drew, they'll think they're at a golf tournament. This has got to be the worse idea since thunder stix. But at least they made noise! I hope a bunch of drunk boosters calls out the student section for being a group of "those guys."

By the way, doesn't this sound like something the student government would come up with. Perhaps they should also press a "no alcohol pledge greek week."

Yeah that probably wont happen.

My big statement before the big game

Ladies and gentlemen of Eastern Washington,

In just a few short hours, our boys in red will take the field against the Montana Grizzlies of Missoula with the rights to the Big Sky Championship on the line. It's the umpteenth time that these teams have faced off and it's been a big deal.

However, I must inform you all that this will be the first year that I will not bash the state of Montana in an article. I'm sorry. But I live in the state of Montana now, and I must say it's actually a pretty cool state.

Was I wrong about Montana? No. It seems like there's a person getting eaten by a grizzly bear every week. The internet here is in the 1995 stages and I have to get it from a Verizon Wireless card and it takes me 30 minutes to download a YouTube clip. My neighbor has a cowbell on his truck. You're more likely to get struck by lightning then find cell phone reception.

But does that make it a bad place? No it rocks. The people here rock. The scenery here rocks and the nightlife is absolutely freakin' hilarious. However... while I tip my cap to the state of Montana, Griz fans will not get such a kind gesture.

I still find your football team to be unbearable. I find your new uniforms the worst things to happen to football since Boise State's new uniforms. I'm getting sick of your talking about going to the WAC and sucking for 20 years. I can't wait for the Eastern Washington Eagles to hand you your jockstrap on the red turf.

As far as I'm concerned, Montana is a great land spoiled by the eyesore of hippies and intellectuals in Missoula. This Saturday I'll be the only one wearing a red EWU jersey and I'll probably get some good natured ribbing from the Griz fans at the bar. But you know what? Instead of those pathetic forum trolls that scoured the The Easterner website years ago and told a 21-year old kid he should go procreate himself, these fans might buy me a drink. You know why? Cause it's sports and it's fun. 99 percent of fans get that. The other one percent live with their mother. Too bad some of them just can't get that through their head.

Now if you'll excuse me... GO EAGS!

Polson Soccer photos

Tonight was full of tough soccer. The girls lost 3-2 to Libby in a heart breaker, they led 2-1 at half and ended up giving the winning score with less than two minutes to go. The boys tied Libby 0-0 in a game full of yellow cards and on red card by Libby at the end. Here are some photos from the games...