FB: American Rivers Conference

[Alfredeneumann]

My son heard today that former All-Conference DE Nico Botembe died today of Lupus. Let's all say a prayer for his family. No one should pass away at 25.

Nico Botembe
From Wartburg Pastor Ramona Bouzard, dean of the chapel

You may have heard that Nico Kadimoke, a recent Wartburg alumnus and member of the football team, died Wednesday as a result of lupus. We ask you to please remember his family and friends at this time of  grief.  Nico's visitation is tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 16, from 4-7 p.m. at Gay and Ciha Funeral Home, 2720 Muscatine Ave., Iowa City. His funeral will be Sunday, Jan. 17, 3 p.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church, 228 East Jefferson St., Iowa City.

*
Nico's fight against lupus was the subject of an article last month in the Iowa City Press-Citizen:
http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20091225/NEWS01/912250318/1079/

Also, of note, are these reflections on Nico by another person with lupus:
http://femmenoir.net/2009/12/28/living-with-lupus-nico-kadimoke/
http://femmenoir.net/2010/01/14/rip-nico-kadimoke/

[Alfredeneumann]

More Nico info

There will be a candlelight service in the basement of City High School in Iowa City following the visitation for Nico Kadimoke.

Again, Nico's visitation is tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 16, from 4-7 p.m. at Gay and Ciha Funeral Home,  2720 Muscatine Ave., Iowa City. His funeral will be Sunday, Jan. 17, 3 p.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church, 228 East Jefferson St., Iowa City.

[Purple Heys]

Having read the article, my heart breaks for Nico and his family all the more.

As parents, we all watch our kids grow with hope for their bright and plentiful future.  When I watch these kids play football, I can't even imagine that one can be cut down so swiftly.  The way they battle on the football field, you'd think they were invincible.

Then we read about young men like Nico who battled like the All-IIAC player he was, or about the battle currently being waged by A.J. Raebel of UW-W.

I like to think that what made them football players; the willingness to work through pain, the intense will to succeed, to pick yourself back up when you've been knocked down; is what helps them to face something like this and beat it.

But when we hear a strong young man like Nico passes away like this, before his time, we have to realize that there are things even they can't beat and to cherish the time we get with them as football players but more importantly as sons and young men.

God bless you Nico.  And God bless you A.J. - keep fighting.

[sportsknight]

Nico was a couple years behind me at Wartburg, and I can't say I knew him well, but everything I heard about him was that he was a great guy and had a larger than life personality.  He's the second very recent alum of the Wartburg football program to pass away in the last 18 months.  Hopefully there aren't anymore for a good long time.

While losing guys like Nico sucks a while lot, hopefully it reminds us to let those we hold dear know how important they are to us.  None of us know exactly how much time we have on this Earth, so it's important to live everyday to the fullest.  From what I've heard, that's exactly what Nico did.

[DBQ1965]

Having read the article, my heart breaks for Nico and his family all the more.

As parents, we all watch our kids grow with hope for their bright and plentiful future.  When I watch these kids play football, I can't even imagine that one can be cut down so swiftly.  The way they battle on the football field, you'd think they were invincible.

Then we read about young men like Nico who battled like the All-IIAC player he was, or about the battle currently being waged by A.J. Raebel of UW-W.

I like to think that what made them football players; the willingness to work through pain, the intense will to succeed, to pick yourself back up when you've been knocked down; is what helps them to face something like this and beat it.

But when we hear a strong young man like Nico passes away like this, before his time, we have to realize that there are things even they can't beat and to cherish the time we get with them as football players but more importantly as sons and young men.

God bless you Nico.  And God bless you A.J. - keep fighting.

Well said, PH.  Thank you for that.

[footballfan413]

My deepest, deepest condolences to Nico's family, friends and the Wartburg community.  A sad day indeed.

[footballfan413]

I like to think that what made them football players; the willingness to work through pain, the intense will to succeed, to pick yourself back up when you've been knocked down; is what helps them to face something like this and beat it.

God bless you Nico.  And God bless you A.J. - keep fighting.

Those attributes have to be invaluable in one's fight as well as the fact that immense levels of love, support and prayers from everyone has healing powers.  Thanks PH.

[doolittledog]

So that we don't go too long in between posts.  And because I like looking up mostly meaningless facts.  Conference records for current IIAC football coaches.

BVU - Jay Anderson - 4 years - 16-16

Central - Jeff McMartin - 6 years - 40-8  4 titles

Coe - Steve Staker - 2 years - 11-5

Cornell - Vince Brautigam - 0 years - 0-0  14-52 in 8 seasons at Dubuque

Dubuque - Stan Zweifel - 1 year - 4-4

Loras - Steve Osterberger - 4 years - 12-20  27-25 in 6 seasons at BVU

Luther - Mike Durnin - 2 years - 8-8

Simpson - Jim Glogowski - 2 years - 7-9

Wartburg - Rick Willis - 2 years 12-4  1 title  79-14 and 4 titles in 9 seasons previously with Wartburg


Or, to do it by years...

6 years - Jeff McMartin - Central - 40-8  4 titles

4 years - Jay Anderson - BVU - 16-16
4 years - Steve Osterberger - Loras - 12-20

2 years - Rick Willis - Wartburg - 12-4  1 title
2 years - Steve Staker - Coe - 11-5
2 years - Mike Durnin - Luther - 8-8
2 years - Jim Glogowski - Simpson - 7-9

1 year  - Stan Zweifel - Dubuque - 4-4

0 years - Vince Brautigam - Cornell - 0-0

[5 Words or Less]

Any thoughts on this?

NCAA might have concussion rule change in football

Monday, Jan. 4, 2010
DETROIT -- The NCAA's director of health and safety says the governing body is considering a rule change that would allow football officials to remove players from games if they show signs of a concussion.

Dr. David Klossner divulged the proposal Monday in response to a question from Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the legal issues related to football head injuries.

Klossner was asked if the NCAA would react to what happened with fired Texas Tech coach Mike Leach and player Adam James. Cohen said James should've been sent to get medical help and not to a shed when he had a concussion.

Leach has denied he mistreated James, son of former NFL player and ESPN analyst Craig James.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Any thoughts on this?

NCAA might have concussion rule change in football

Monday, Jan. 4, 2010
DETROIT -- The NCAA's director of health and safety says the governing body is considering a rule change that would allow football officials to remove players from games if they show signs of a concussion.

Dr. David Klossner divulged the proposal Monday in response to a question from Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the legal issues related to football head injuries.

Klossner was asked if the NCAA would react to what happened with fired Texas Tech coach Mike Leach and player Adam James. Cohen said James should've been sent to get medical help and not to a shed when he had a concussion.

Leach has denied he mistreated James, son of former NFL player and ESPN analyst Craig James.

Allowing refs the ability to remove players showing signs of concussion seems a no-brainer (sorry; pun intended ), but what would be the signs?  Absolutely, the zebras should have the authority if coaches are irresponsible, but I have trouble imagining this actually working in practice.

[5 Words or Less]

Old news, but still news

NCAA FOOTBALL RULES COMMITTEE ACTION FOR 2009-10

Introduction
This year the NCAA Football Rules Committee made a very small number of changes in the rules, reflecting the general satisfaction of the college football community for the rules currently in place.  The committee continues to focus on player safety and sportsmanship as areas that need vigilance.  Added to the rule book is a Statement on Sportsmanship that draws coaches' attention to their responsibility for the behavior of the student-athletes.

Consistent with the other NCAA sports, the football rules committee introduced a two-year process for playing rules changes.  Thus the new rule book will cover the period 2009-2010.

The changes summarized below have been adopted by the NCAA Football Rules Committee and approved by the Playing Rules Oversight Panel (PROP), which has jurisdiction over the rules committees for all sports.

Rules Changes
1.  Player Safety.
   Flagrant Personal Fouls (Rule 9-6). For 2009-10 the rules committee has added a new section that calls for conferences in the days following a game to review certain particularly dangerous plays.  This new rule says that if a player is ejected for any flagrant personal foul the conference must review the game video for possible further action.  In addition, if the officials call fouls for targeting defenseless players or using the crown of the helmet and the player is not ejected, the rules mandate a conference review.  Furthermore, if the review by the conference reveals actions that should have resulted in a personal foul but were not called, the conference may impose sanctions.
   Chin Strap Included in Face-Mask Fouls (Rule 9-1-2-q)  The helmet chin strap is included in the face-mask foul.  It is a personal foul if a player twists, turns or pulls the face mask, any helmet opening, or now the chin strap of an opponent. 

2.  Sportsmanship.
   The committee made no changes in the sportsmanship rules.  Furthermore, the committee was unanimous in its endorsement of the way the sportsmanship rules are currently written and officiated.  To underscore its concerns, the committee added a Statement on Sportsmanship to the introductory section of the rule book.  This statement emphasizes the importance of discipline by players and coaches, and reminds coaches of their responsibility for controlling the behavior of their players.
 
3.  Competitive Balance.
   Rugby-Style Kicker (Rule 9-1-4-a-5) The recent trend toward punters using a rugby-style kick has created a competitive disadvantage favoring the punting team.  Because the player runs for several yards before kicking the ball, his teammates have more time to move downfield for coverage.  Furthermore, there has been officiating inconsistency regarding whether such a rugby-style kicker has the same protection afforded a "normal" punter.  Under the new rules, if a potential kicker carries the ball outside the tackle box (defined as extending five yards on each side of the snapper) before kicking the ball, there will be no foul for running-into or roughing if he is blocked or tackled by an opponent.  The kicker remains protected, as always, from unnecessary roughness fouls.

4.  Other Changes.
   Jersey Colors (Rule 1-4-3-a)  The rules for many years have required white jerseys to be worn by one team, which must be the visiting team unless the opponent agrees otherwise prior to the start of the season.  The new rule creates a process whereby both teams may wear colored jerseys if the visitors have received written permission from the home team, and if the home team's conference agrees that the jerseys are of contrasting colors.  If the visitors wear colored jerseys without having such agreements, they will receive a 15-yard penalty following the opening kickoff of each half.
   Extension of Periods (Rule 3-2-3) If a foul takes place on a play during which time expires in a quarter, the period is normally extended if the penalty is accepted.  Starting in 2009, the period is not extended if the penalty includes loss of down.
   Offensive Scrimmage Formation (Rules 1-1-1-b-2 and 7-1-3-b) The requirement for having at least seven offensive players on the line of scrimmage has been re-stated to allow no more than four players in the backfield.  This is not a rule change but merely a different way of writing the same requirement.  It does eliminate the foul for a team having ten players when there are only six on the line of scrimmage.  Otherwise, the requirements for scrimmage formations remain the same.

[CaliRamRL6]

Any thoughts on this?

NCAA might have concussion rule change in football

Monday, Jan. 4, 2010
DETROIT -- The NCAA's director of health and safety says the governing body is considering a rule change that would allow football officials to remove players from games if they show signs of a concussion.

Dr. David Klossner divulged the proposal Monday in response to a question from Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the legal issues related to football head injuries.

Klossner was asked if the NCAA would react to what happened with fired Texas Tech coach Mike Leach and player Adam James. Cohen said James should've been sent to get medical help and not to a shed when he had a concussion.

Leach has denied he mistreated James, son of former NFL player and ESPN analyst Craig James.

Refs miss enough as it is. I have a hard time seeing this work in a real game. I know various governing bodies are trying to make things safer for players but I think the individual's team is responsible for removing players. When I say team, I mean coaches, trainers, and team doctors. If you have a coach that wants to overlook clear signs of trouble, it's time for the AD and/or school president to step in have a sit down with said coach.

[Purple Heys]

Any thoughts on this?

NCAA might have concussion rule change in football

Monday, Jan. 4, 2010
DETROIT -- The NCAA's director of health and safety says the governing body is considering a rule change that would allow football officials to remove players from games if they show signs of a concussion.

Dr. David Klossner divulged the proposal Monday in response to a question from Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the legal issues related to football head injuries.

Klossner was asked if the NCAA would react to what happened with fired Texas Tech coach Mike Leach and player Adam James. Cohen said James should've been sent to get medical help and not to a shed when he had a concussion.

Leach has denied he mistreated James, son of former NFL player and ESPN analyst Craig James.

With the CDC involved, you just watch, the lawyers are not far behind.  When the kid goes undiagnosed by an official's crew and, God forbid the worst happens, now the Official's crew can be open to be sued.

Not only does the crowd hate you but now you are potentially liable.  No thanks, I am hanging up my whistle.

[Klompen]

Tragic news happening in Haiti and wonderful news happening in Pella as a result.  At least 5 orphans from a destroyed orphanage are now in Pella awaiting adoption by Pella families.  Pella is living up to it's reputation as a City of Refuge.  Special thanks to the Pella Corp people who sent their corporate jet to pick them up and bring them here from Miami.  Some reports said all 9 of the orphans at that orphanage were coming to Pella.  

[warthog]

I hope everyone gets home safely tonight.  Put an extra log on the fire and stay put.  This ice reminds me why I prefer the winters in Iowa to the ones we had in St. Louis.

Klompen:  That is a neat thing happening in Pella.  I hope things go well for all the families adopting the little ones from Haiti.