FB: Empire 8

[theoriginalupstate]

football is a cyclical game there upstate

Oh I know...

What sense is there to label that muff as a "freshman" mistake instead of just a mistake?

[fisheralum91]

helps a certain coach sleep better?

[SJFF82]

football is a cyclical game there upstate

Oh I know...

What sense is there to label that muff as a "freshman" mistake instead of just a mistake?

Were u there Upstate?  Ironically, the regular returner (#11) did the same thing earlier in the game....just didnt fumble it when he was blown up by 3 AU defenders.  The ball was rolling towards the goal line and he kept back peddling right by the ball and picked it up at the 3 yd line just in time to get lambasted.   Guess it was his way of showing the Freshman what to do late in the 4th...

[JQV]

my other alma mater - New Hartford- is looking like powerhouses in both football and soccer this year.

My Uncle and Cousin told me they had to park a few blocks away last week for the NH football game.  It's like a little piece of Dixie right there in the Mohawk Valley FA.

[fisheralum91]

Jose-it was amazing.
I went to the NH Wboro game and never in my 40 years have i seen a crowd like that at NH
News said up to 4k were there..
Was unreal---great game too!

[dewcrew88]

either scenerio was a nightmare-one that i hope to get past in the off season.
it was bad enough when the error happened- it was quite another to simply write it off as a freshman mistake.
as you said- it was a coaching decision to put him back there.

i know that im grumbling over an old issue- but man---that game was more than winable

right before the muffed punt return, Episcipo dropped a for sure pick six all alone in the flats, and the quote from Vos. in the paper appeared to throw him under the bus for the muffed punt.  I can only hope the quote was entirely taken out of context, because if not I would sure be wondering if I were Episcipo why my coach openly blamed me for a kid who tries to pick up a rolling punt at the goal line with 2 opposing players bearing down, when he is not even the regular punt returner in the first place.

As a reporter, that quote was probably not taken out of context. Without being there, I will bet that what was quoted was basically what Vosburgh said. If  the linebacker makes the INT, the freshmen isn't back to make the punt return in the first place. It's not really ripping on him, it's really just saying about the flow of the game: if he makes the interception, the game changes, and I'll bet that's what he said and meant.

[fisheralum91]

dew-
i hope you are right as episcipo gave 4 great years and was the backbone of that d for the last 2.
i would hope that coach vos wouldnt throw his star senior under the bus

[bomber3]

Anyone know if springfield has a webcast for the ithaca gane planned this weekend? Or raido?  Thanks.

[SJFF82]

dew-
i hope you are right as episcipo gave 4 great years and was the backbone of that d for the last 2.
i would hope that coach vos wouldnt throw his star senior under the bus

Dew is prob correct, he said what he said and it is what it is.  I just wonder is it the right thing to say to a reporter so that it comes out in the paper as if there is a direct connection between Episcipo's dropped int and the loss?  That's how it read Dew.

And again, the real issue in all this is that it wasnt the reg. punt returner that was sent back there to 'pick-up' Episcipo.  Perhaps Episcipo was let down as much as he let down...

[SJFF82]

Anyone know if springfield has a webcast for the ithaca gane planned this weekend? Or raido?  Thanks.

Superman??   You change names too?

[theoriginalupstate]

dew-
i hope you are right as episcipo gave 4 great years and was the backbone of that d for the last 2.
i would hope that coach vos wouldnt throw his star senior under the bus

Dew is prob correct, he said what he said and it is what it is.  I just wonder is it the right thing to say to a reporter so that it comes out in the paper as if there is a direct connection between Episcipo's dropped int and the loss?  That's how it read Dew.

And again, the real issue in all this is that it wasnt the reg. punt returner that was sent back there to 'pick-up' Episcipo.  Perhaps Episcipo was let down as much as he let down...

I really don't have a problem with putting short back there.  The part I do have a problem with is labeling it as a "freshman" mistake.  Just don't label the miscue as a "Freshman mistake" because it went wrong, it wasn't a "Freshman" mistake it was just a mistake...

The punt return game has been down right pathetic this year, they're averaging 3 yards a return...

I'd rather give a play maker a shot at it than someone who's just going to catch the ball and fall forward...

[SJFF82]

I respectfully disagree, although our hearts appear to be in the same place.

We didnt need a 'play' in that spot.  We needed that ball.  Like I said though, Witkowski ('W') tried his best to give one away also, so who knows?  The question remains though, why isnt Short the 'all-time' punt returner, and if the answer is he was working his way there, fine, but Sat with 6 minutes to go in a tie game with the E8 on the line isnt the time to make sure he has his punt return reps in.  Plus it appears that they diverted from even their own plan by putting him back there deep in their own territory where 'W' was taking 'em up to that point.

EDIT:  I completely agree with you on the whole "freshman mistake" thing, although its prob. form over substance.

[sjfcards]

As a reporter, that quote was probably not taken out of context. Without being there, I will bet that what was quoted was basically what Vosburgh said.

Can anyone help me out and let me know what Vos said? I don't get the rochester paper, and I couldn't seem to find it going back a few pages. I would like to see what he said before I make an judgements on it. I'll say this; Episcopo should have picked that ball, and probably returne it deep into AU territory, if not for a score. However, I have seen balls that look like easy picks dropped at all levels of football and that alond does not make Fisher lose that game.

My friend and I were wondering aloud why Short was going out to return that punt late in the game, and he made a point I thought was interesting. He was thinking that Short was back their because the other return man (sorry not sure who it was), tried to pick up that ball inside the ten (the one that was not fumbled. It made total sense until Short did the exact same thing. It just left us confused.

[AUPepBand]

Pep looked at the play-by-play and found that Short had received two previous punts during the game. Here's the link to the story:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009910250360

The stats for the game incorrectly reported the Saxon who stripped Short of the ball to score the "fluke" TD. It was actually AU DB Roland O'Brien #8. It is correct in this online version. It has also been corrected in the game stats.

[maxpower]

But the next Alfred drive proved disastrous for the Cardinals. After linebacker Andy Episcopo (Webster Thomas) missed a near-certain interception, Alfred punted, and freshman Anthony Short (East High) decided to pick the ball up at the Fisher 2 to prevent the Saxons from downing it near the goal line. But as he grabbed it, Alfred cornerback Roland O'Brien yanked the ball away and scored the go-ahead TD.

Short had not returned any punts all season. Fisher coach Paul Vosburgh called it a "freshman mistake" but added, "If we intercept the ball, he's not in that position."