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With the fall season in full effect and October creeping its way into full force the NFL pulled out all the stops in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month and its dedication to the cause.
A Crucial Catch, a joint venture undertaken by the NFL and the American Cancer Society, is a nationwide initiative that encourages women to have an annual screening or breast exam in order to reduce risk and save lives.
With players, coaches and officials all clad in pink emblazoned gear last night, the spotlight could not have shined brighter than it did during the opening ceremony of the NY Giants vs. Chicago Bears game in East Rutherford, New Jersey. As the players geared up to take the field, 125 women all clad in pink T-shirts and hats formed a large ribbon at midfield to signify their life altering journey and survival of breast cancer. Invited by the Giants from the American Cancer Society and nearby Hackensack Medical Center the women were without a doubt the face of the initiative that encourages women 40 and older to have an annual mammogram.
With yesterdays games kicking off the month long celebration and fight to find a cure, expect to see a slight pink tint in your NFL football throughout the month of October. With game balls sporting pink ribbon decals, to oversized ribbons at the 25 yard line, this month will truly embody the idea that "Real Men Wear Pink!" in the ultimate campaign to draw awareness to the a effects of this disease. Players are also encouraged to sport the pink motif and have responded with overwhelming success in years past, a trait that looks to continue here during the 2010 season. With players, coaches and officials sporting everything from pink cleats, wristbands, gloves, chin straps, sideline caps, helmet decals, captains patches, sideline towels and endzones featuring pink goalpost padding, get ready to embrace this initiative and truly take time to find a way to offer your support.
With Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald, whose mother died of cancer in 2003, pledging to donate $1,000 for every catch and an additional $5,000 for each touchdown during the month of October, my hope is that countless other NFL players will do the same. While many players may not have been directly effected by this or similar diseases, I feel that it would be great to see the league and its charities, players, and fans offer their collective support and find ways during the month to really make a difference. A simple donation to the Susan G Komen Foundation, racing in the
Race for the Cure relay event or even just sporting pink in your daily life via wristband, dress shirt or even jersey (NFL Women's Collection) are all great ways to get involved and spread the word on Breast Cancer.
The good news if that there is a substantial fundraising component to the
Crucial Catch campaign, which will surely afford a number of players and fans the opportunity to contribute to the cause. All that pink gear used by NFL players will be autographed by the player who wore it and made available for purchase at NFL Auction throughout the coming months, with all auction proceeds of the NFL pink gear going to the American Cancer Society. With the movement in full force and the initiative underway, I guess the only question left is how successful with it be and who is willing to help the NFL in its fight?
Having decided to step up to the plate in a big way, EA Sports announced that it has added a little flavor to the Madden NFL 11 video game. EA reports that pink gloves and cleats will appear in the popular NFL video game when played by gamers in October. EA Sports also went on to add that it donated $100,000 to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation as part of their effort. So while the NFL's
Crucial Catch initiative looks to be out to a hot start with EA Sports, Larry Fitzgerald and the NY Giants paving the way on Sunday, I look forward to the continued effort of those in and around the league to support Breast Cancer Awareness and Research throughout the month and thank you so much for your willingness to bring hope to those in need.
*This article is dedicated to my grandmother, Joanne Beyer, a Breast Cancer Survivor!
As I woke up this morning to a heavy fog in Orange County I could not help but be reminded of all those cold, brisk 8 a.m. walks to campus on Monday morning in Corvallis. With game day in the books and solid weekend of studying for anatomy exams, partying and shooting the breeze with friends, my sophomore year at Oregon State was without a doubt something special. Flash forward to my second year of graduate school and while I may not be hitting the books as often as I used to, another tried and true, but far most publicized sophomore, is quietly working his way into the hearts and minds of Beaver Nation and the Pac-10.
Ryan Katz, the redshirt sophomore quarterback for the #24 Oregon State Beavers turned in yet another noteworthy performance this weekend in Tucson. The Santa Monica, CA native completed 30 of 42 passes for 393 yards and two touchdowns in Saturdays 29-27 Pac-10 road opener against the #9 Arizona Wildcats. Having lost his first two non conference road games to AP Top 10 opponents TCU and Boise State, the young Katz turned in an outstanding performance that left many of us wondering if the conference may have just gotten a little deeper at the quarterback position.
Having played in only a handful of games last year, Katz came into OSU highly touted as the next signal caller to replace veteran Sean Canfield. Having had two years to work under Head Coach Mike Riley, arguably the most underrated coach in the country, as well as 7th round draft pick in Canfield, Katz has displayed an unbelievable amount of poise this season in the face of one of the nations toughest schedules. Having started his first game at Cowboys Stadium against then #6 TCU, one could only imagine the swing of emotions the redshirt sophomore could have been feeling as he left pass after pass sailing over or rocketing past his intended receivers for most of the game.
With a week to recover from the disappointing 31-20 loss, Katz and the offense rebounded significantly with a huge 35-28 victory over Louisville at home. Having established the running game against the Cardinals, Jacquizz Rodgers 132 yards on the ground and two touchdowns were a welcome sign for an offense that was uncharacteristically pass heavy in its debut in Texas just a week earlier. Katz was impressive however at 15/26 for 142 yards and two touchdowns, having left briefly in the third quarter after taking a shot to the ribs that left him noticeably shaken on the sidelines.
Flash forward to Boise State and the Pac-10 conference opener one week later against ASU. Having turned in a rather average performance once again on the road in Boise against the nations 3rd ranked defense, Katz and the Beavers looked to bonce back at home having come off its ninth straight home opening win just three weeks earlier. With the Pac-10 in a state of limbo and with the notion of Arizona State narrowly pulling off an upset bid the weekend before versus #3 Oregon, Katz again stepped up to the plate and delivered a strong 19/29 for 260 yards and two touchdown performance. Having not thrown an interception in his first four games, Katz had the Beavers sitting at 2-2 and just out of the AP Top 25 heading into last Saturdays contest against the Wildcats.
With a win over the Arizona, Katz took a step in the right direction and supplanted himself into the mix among the quarterback elite in the Pac-10. But if there's one the Pac-10 and Beaver Nation know about Mike Riley's team, its that they usually start slow but always hit there stride come conference play. Katz's introduction coming against a schedule rated the toughest in the nation so far having already faced TCU, No. 12 nationally in total defense, Boise State (No. 3), Louisville (No. 52), Arizona State (No. 49) and now having toppled Arizona (No. 4) last weekend. It would be easy for one to assume Katz has seen everything in terms of schematics, coaching and overall defensive talent after last weekend, but the Pac-10 is always a crap shoot and he will have to continue to improve if the Beavers are going to remain in bowl contention this season.
From the looks of things the schedule doesn't get any easier for the Beavers as they head to Seattle to take a hungry Washington Husky team that is looking to establish their identity in the conference as well. Having beat USC on the road two weeks ago and with the Dawgs coming off another tough loss the ASU, all eyes with be on Washington Quarterback Jake Locker on Saturday in a game that is sure to generate some buzz airing on ESPN at 7:15PM PT. With another shaky September in the books and this their seventh straight year without a winning record in during the seasons opening month, look for OSU to turn another tough start into a fabulous finish having boasted eight wins or more since 2006. While Riley's pro-style system takes time to learn, Katz has developed quickly having been through three spring practices and being Canfield's backup last season. With an arm that rivals former OSU quarterback and NFL draft pick Derek Anderson, the future looks bright for Katz heading into his first season under center for the Beavers.
Sitting at the end of week 6 having gone 85/148 for 1,113 and eight touchdowns with only one interception, and with a quarterback rating of 130.07, look for Katz to improve his completion percentage (57.4%), covert key third downs and continue to spread the ball around in the absence of star wide receiver James Rodgers. Having already played and won in their conference opener without James two weeks ago, look for TE Joe Halahuni, RB Jacquizz Rodgers and WR's Markus Wheaton, Jordan Bishop and veteran Darrell Catchings to all set up in the coming weeks for Katz and the OSU offense. With the Oregon State starting quarterback lineage extending nearly a decade into OSU history, look for Ryan Katz to make his mark in Oregon State lore and keep the Beavers running strong this season.
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