That’s why I’m a linebacker

by Jordyn White; TheRoot.com
In women’s pro football, color matters, but race does not.

I hate her. I’ve never seen her before, and don’t know her, but I don’t need to. I see what she looks like. I see what she’s wearing. I see who she’s with. That tells me everything I need to know. She can’t be trusted–her kind never can–and all she wants is to push her own agenda and obliviate mine. So, for the next hour, my sisters and I will do everything in our power to show her and her little girl gang how we feel about having to share our turf with them. They will leave here, battered and bruised, with their heads down and their tails between their legs. And we will remain superior.

My fervor for this sectarian battle into which I am all too eager to enter has nothing to do with race or skin color. When my opponent is in her war gear, all I can see on her is the white in her eyes. But her armor– helmet, pads, uniform, socks, gloves, cleats–makes her readily identifiable. I’m a linebacker on a women’s semi-professional full contact football team, the DC Divas. Eleven Saturdays a year, for 3 hours, my teammates and I put on our maroon, gold, and white, and go to war.

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Running a football pool

Now we’re not suggesting that you actually bet on the Superbowl game, but football pools can make watching the game a lot more fun. There are a variety of ways to set up the pool and to pick winners but we’ll tell you how the simplest and most common game is played.

Square Football Pool – Create a 10 x 10 grid with a place for numbers along both the top and left sides of the page. The top row of numbers will represent one team and the side row will represent the other team. The numbers are not actually placed on the top and side, however, until the grid has been filled with the contestants’ names or initials.

You can sell the squares for any amount you wish. If the price is $1.00 per square this puts $100 in the pool. You can also wager pieces of candy, gum, or other novelty prizes.

Once all the squares have been selected, randomly pick numbers from 0-9 and assign them to one team’s rows. Now do the same for the other team. These numbers represent the last number in the score of each team. In other words, if the score at the end of the game (or quarter if you’re breaking it up) is Saints 17 – Colts 14, then the winning square is the one with a Saints number of 7 and a Colts number of 4. Since no one knows what numbers each square will represent, the odds are the same for everyone.  You can divide the winnings and award funds at the end of each quarter, at the half or just at the end of the game. So good luck and enjoy.

There are plenty of websites that offer software or online versions of football pools but it’s just as easy to do it the old fashioned way and draw it on on a piece of paper. If you need a template, click here.

FYI: Most states in the U.S. regard this as a form of entertainment as long as 100 percent of the funds in the pool are paid back out to the contestants though (this is the fine print)we strongly suggest you check your local laws before participating.

Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest

For the fourth year in a row, Doritos presents the “Crash the Super Bowl” contest, incorporating user generated videos and potentially shelling out a lot of do-re-mi.

Six finalists have been selected from more than 4,000 entries and the stakes this year are bigger and bolder than ever. Contestants are not only competing to have their self-made Doritos commercials aired during the Super Bowl XLIV broadcast, they are shooting to make history by beating the ad pros and garnering the top three spots in USA TODAY’s annual Ad Meter. If they can do it, Doritos will award the winners a shared $5 million cash prize.

Online consumer voting will determine which three of the six finalists will air as Doritos’ Super Bowl commercials during the big game on February 7, 2010.

Not sure why there aren’t any female filmmakers represented. C’mon girls where are you? In any case, we kinda like House Rules by Joelle De Jesus. Fans  can vote for their favorite finalist once a day at www.crashthesuperbowl.com until January 31, 2010.

Sport Speak: Football A-Z

Blitz – When defensive secondary players rush through the offensive line into the backfield to try to “sack” the quarterback.

Blocking – Offensive players use their bodies and arms as a means to impede defenders from making tackles, moving them away from the path of the ball carrier.

Bomb – A very long forward pass.

Buttonhook – Pass pattern in which the receiver runs straight ahead several yards, then quickly turns around to catch the pass.

Dead Ball – Declared by an official at the end of each down after a player has been tackled and the ball is no longer in play.

Down – The offensive sequence of plays starting from the line of scrimmage that begins with the center’s snap and ends when the ball is dead; One of a series of plays in which the offensive team must advance at least 10 yards or lose possession.

Drive – Describes a series of downs in the offensive team’s advance toward the goal.

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Tennis star Maria Sharapova guest edits and graces the cover of ESPN Magazine

After her impressive return to competition at the French Open, Maria Sharapova took on another challenge – editing ESPN The Magazine’s third-annual Revenge of the Jocks issue.

In the current issue of The Mag, on newsstands today, Sharapova details how she would fix women’s tennis, and shows readers what she did while rehabbing her shoulder for eight months.

Sharapova on changing women’s tennis:

• The players’ lounge isn’t a nightclub, either. It’s hard to get ready for a match when there’s a bleached-out blonde in six-inch stilettos and a denim miniskirt hanging out. Who is this person, and why is she here?
• Limit on-court injury timeouts to two per season. I’ve asked for a trainer twice in my career, but I’ve played against girls who call for an injury timeout in every match. They’re just buying time; it’s laughable.

In addition, Sharapova dispenses life advice to fellow jocks, and gives a NFL-caliber makeover to rookie QB Matthew Stafford who obviously  hasn’t had a lot of on-camera experience.

Check out video of  the Sharapova and Stafford fashion shoot here.

Women’s Football: Sunday Breakers Wrap (May 17, 2009)

Last night the Southern California Breakers hosted the Tucson Monsoon at the Capistrano Valley High School field. This was the second meeting for the two teams with the last match ending up with a 14-13 victory for the Monsoon. This was just last Saturday in Tucson. Now, the Monsoon would bring their 4-0 record to Southern California to face the 2-2 Breakers. Here’s how it went down:

First Quarter: The Monsoon were the first to start on offense but could not capitalize. The Breakers started their first drive on the Monsoon 45. With 11:14 showing on the clock, during the Breakers second offensive play, Vanessa Santiallan (28) ran 45 yards for a touchdown. The point after attempt was no good and the score was 6-0. Without wasting time, Santiallan ran in for another TD with 9:03 on the clock. Elaine Iba (81) made a key block to enable the score. The first point after attempt was good but called back due to a penalty. The second attempt was also good and the score was now 13-0, Breakers. The Breakers struck gold again at 6:35 on the clock when Monique Boone (39) caught a pass for a touchdown. The point after kick by Joy Barry (22) was good and the score was now 20-0. The first quarter excitement for the Breakers continued when Barry intercepted a pass with 3:09 on the clock. The drive and quarter ended with a completion to Iba with 0:02 left in Q1 on the Monsoon 1 yard line.

Second Quarter: The Breakers waste no time and score with 14:50 on the clock via a QB keeper by Shawna Murphy (18). A bad snap foiled the point after try although Barry made an effort to run it in. The score was now 26-0. The remainder of the quarter had the two teams going back and forth on possessions. With 3:02 on the clock, the Breakers fumbled and allowed the Monsoon to start on the So Cal 13. With 0:56 left in the half, the Monsoon socred but failed to make the point after. The score was now 26-6. The Breakers got the ball back and ran out the clock into halftime.

Third Quarter: The Breakers start on offense after the half on the Monsoon 45. Michelle Jacot (25) made the return to give the team this favorable starting point. The team couldn’t capitalize and gave the Monsoon possession back at 13:09. Later in the 3rd, the Breakers fumble with 8:12 on the clock. The Monsoon are unable to cash in and the quarter continues with back and forth possessions. The Breakers fumbled again with 1:46 left on the clock but the Monsoon again fail to take advantage of the opportunity.

Fourth Quarter: Boone recovers a fumble for the Breakers with 11:50 on the clock but the team can’t convert. There is more back and forth before the Breakers strike again. Santillan runs in a TD with 8:51 showing on the clock but the point after is no good. The score is now 32-6. With 3:41 showing on the clock the Breakers fumble again but the Monsoon is unable to convert. The Breakers get the ball back at 1:49 remaining and run out the clock. The final score is 32-6.

Coach Manny told me during the game that he felt that it was important not to run up the score on the opposing team. He explained that Vincent Smith, head coach for the Monsoon, had the chance to score at the end of the previous week’s game but didn’t. When I told him that I had heard of another final score in the IWFL earlier that day that ended up 77-7 he was quite disappointed. “This is what makes players quit”, he told me. Indeed, although it may feel good to score over and over it does not help the other team’s morale. I’ve heard others say that they need to score as much as possible in order to assure a playoff spot at the end. If there are similar records then points decide. Basically, you have league morale on one hand and winning your division on the other. Which should prevail?

At any rate, you can listen to the broadcast of this game here which includes my halftime interviews with Becky Leetch and Vanessa Santillan. In addition, today at 3:00 PM PST is Women’s Football Talk where I’ll be on to give my game recap.

The next Breakers game is in Los Angeles against the Amazons next Saturday, May 23.

Another Pretty Tough book – “Playing with the Boys”

Playing with the Boys by Liz Tigelaar

New girl Lucy is desperate for friends. She tries out for Beachwood High soccer, but despite her amazingly accurate kick, fails to make the team. When the Coach points out that varsity football is looking for a new kicker, Lucy is skeptical. Football? Isn’t that a boys’ game?

But on the gridiron Lucy discovers that she feels strong—in control for the first time since her mother died. She loves football. She actually wants to play! (She also wants to hang out with super-cute quarterback Ryan Conner. But that’s just icing on the cake.)

Too bad no one else wants her on the team. Not the boys’ coach, not her teammates, and especially not her overprotective dad. Will Lucy cave in to the pressure? Or will she prove she’s pretty tough after all?

Publisher: Razorbill
ISBN: 978-1-59514-112-5
Ages: Young Adult
Format: Paperback novel/256 pages

Playing With The Boys at Amazon

Reviews for Playing with the Boys:
A great story! This book encourages young women to unleash the potential to play one of the best sports on earth. As a female football player, I hope more young women see that they aren’t limited to just being one of the girls.  Jamie Flynt – Alabama Renegades

Another slam dunk for Liz Tigelaar. “Playing with the Boys” is a great example of how chick lit meets sports lit with stellar results.  – Taylor M.

… a thoroughly enjoyable novel. – the Book Muncher

Pretty Tough novels are like receiving two scoops of ice cream for the price of one – books filled to the brim with high school drama and a sporty back story millions of athletes hunger for. – Keri Mikulski, author of Screwball

Super Bowl Commercials

Everyone knows that if your team isn’t in the Super Bowl, the biggest (perhaps only) reason to watch are the commercials. Some companies have decided to leak their own Super Bowl spots online.

If you can’t wait until the game to watch the commercials, Fast Company has just about ads, including one from PETA that won’t be airing on TV.

Keep in mind, each of these commercials cost their companies $3 million to run.

Big Ben’s little sis preparing for her big game

In 2006, high school student Carlee Roethlisberger, Big Ben’s little sister, made her way down to the field to stand with the Super Bowl’s winning quarterback and celebrate the moment.

It’s tough for Carlee not to be there this time around as her brother tries to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers to a second Super Bowl title in four years. While Ben is playing quarterback against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday in Tampa, Fla., Carlee will be practicing at Oklahoma City’s Ford Center for No. 2 Oklahoma’s big game the following day against No. 13 Tennessee. Lady Vols coach Pat Summitt makes her first attempt to win her 1,000th career victory.

Carlee, a sophomore forward for the Sooners, grew up honing her game against Ben, who is seven years her senior. As the children of a former Georgia Tech quarterback and a Northwest Missouri State basketball player, they’d go after each other at football and basketball— and soccer, and Frisbee and board games. Even games the two of them just made up.

“There was always a competition going on, and a friendly competition—kind of,” Carlee said. “He let me know he won. Definitely it was competitive growing up.”

All of that helped get Carlee where she is today, in an important role as one of the first players off coach Sherri Coale’s bench. She’s averaging about five points and two rebounds, but provides even more as a reliable energy boost off the bench behind All-American center Courtney Paris and her twin sister, Ashley.

This Sunday won’t’ be the first time Carlee is unable to see a big game for her brother, who she still lists in the Sooners’ media guide as being her hero. She’s got a service on her cell phone that allows her to check NFL scores, and her parents also keep her up to date with text messages.

And there’s already a plan in place for Sunday: Team captain Carolyn Winchester is going to TiVo the game.

“Hopefully by the time we get back, we can fast-forward through the commercials, watch the first half and make it to where we can watch before it gets to the end before we find out the final score,” Carlee said.

It won’t be the same as when Carlee got to celebrate at Ford Field in Detroit three years ago, but Carlee and her teammates might be able to provide a substitute. In their last season with the Paris twins on campus, the Sooners have made it no secret that anything less than the school’s second Final Four appearance would be a disappointment.

“Even though I can’t make it to his bright and shining moment this year,” Carlee said, “hopefully we have an opportunity where he can make it to mine.”

Good luck Carlee!!

Running a football pool

Now we’re not suggesting that you actually bet on the Superbowl game this Sunday, but football pools can make watching the game a lot more fun. There are a variety of ways to set up the pool and to pick winners but we’ll tell you how the simplest and most common game is played.

Square Football Pool – Create a 10 x 10 grid with a place for numbers along both the top and left sides of the page. The top row of numbers will represent one team and the side row will represent the other team. The numbers are not actually placed on the top and side, however, until the grid has been filled with the contestants’ names or initials.

You can sell the squares for any amount you wish. If the price is $1.00 per square this puts $100 in the pool. You can also wager pieces of candy, gum, or other novelty prizes.

Once all the squares have been selected, randomly pick numbers from 0-9 and assign them to one team’s rows. Now do the same for the other team. These numbers represent the last number in the score of each team. In other words, if the score at the end of the game (or quarter if you’re breaking it up) is Steelers 17 – Cardinals 14, then the winning square is the one with a Steelers number of 7 and a Cardinals number of 4. Since no one knows what numbers each square will represent, the odds are the same for everyone. You can divide the winnings and award funds at the end of each quarter, at the half or just at the end of the game. So good luck and enjoy.

There are plenty of websites that offer software or online versions of football pools but it’s just as easy to do it the old fashioned way and draw it on on a piece of paper. If you need a template, click here.

FYI: Most states in the U.S. regard this as a form of entertainment as long as 100 percent of the funds in the pool are paid back out to the contestants though (this is the fine print)so we strongly suggest you check your local laws before participating.

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