Running Backs
By Chris Redding
I love football. I didn’t always love football, but I do
now. And I went to Penn State so it’s hard not to like football when you go
there.
What’s my favorite position? Not sure I could have answered
that until I was thinking about all my favorite players. The ones I have always
rooted for to do well when they went professional.
They have all had one thing in common.
They are all running backs. And they happen to be some of
the most famous PSU alum football players.
Info about running backs provided by: http://www.blackshoediaries.com/2007/5/13/221130/292
First comes John Cappalletti. He’s actually from my part of
Pennsylvania so he was a known entity before he became a running back. He
dedicated his Heisman Trophy win to his little brother Joey who had been
diagnosed with Leukemia. That’s a big heart.
Curt Warner held the career rushing record at Penn State
until Evan Royster beat him. He was also running back when I applied to Penn
State. He helped win the Sugar Bowl for them not long after I found out I had
been accepted. He was only 5”11”.
Next come D.J. Dozier whose tenure at PSU overlapped mine. I
did get to see him play in person. His six foot frame could just keep moving
down the field.
Blair Thomas was the first player to rush for 1400 yards in
two seasons earning All American honors in 1987 and 1989. He also was playing
while I was attending PSU. He stands only 5’10”.
Then there were a few years where I didn’t get to watch
football. I got married and followed my husband’s career around Europe. Then kids were born and when they finally
reaching an age where I could sit for more than a nanosecond, I resumed my
football watching.
So I make a leap in years to Evan Royster. Standing at 6’1” he rushed for 513
yards on 82 carries for a 5.3 yards per carry average. The little guy strikes again.
Last, but not least I will give a nod to someone who is no
longer a Nittany Lion. Silas Redd transferred to USC, but when he was a Lion,
he was my favorite player. Standing at
only 5’10” he rushed for 1,188 yards in
the 2011 regular season, third most in the Big Ten Conference. I wish him luck at USC.
I mention everyone’s heights, but you may be thinking they
are all tall. Compared to the rest of
the team, they are not. You see them in
a huddle and sometimes they are a full head shorter than the rest of the
players. That may be why I am drawn to them.
With the Silas Redd’s leaving, I am now in search of a new
favorite player. Who will it be? You can bet it will be a running back.
Blurb Blonde Demolition:
Mallory Sage lives in a small, idyllic town
where nothing ever happens. Just the kind of life she has always wanted. No
one, not even her fellow volunteer firefighters, knows about her past life as
an agent for Homeland Security.
Former partner and lover, Trey McCrane, comes
back into Mallory's life. He believes they made a great team once, and that
they can do so again. Besides, they don't have much choice. Paul Stanley, a
twisted killer and their old nemesis,
is back.
Framed for a bombing and drawn together by
necessity, Mallory and Trey go on the run and must learn to trust each other
again―if they hope to survive. But Mallory has been hiding another secret, one
that could destroy their relationship. And time is running out.
Chris Redding lives in New Jersey with her husband, two
kids, one dog and three rabbits. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in
Journalism. When not writing she works
for her local hospital in the Emergency Services Department. She has been
writing for thirteen years and has five books published.
Links:
2 comments:
Thanks for having me.
cmr
Hi, Chris. Thanks for being my guest today. I've loved football since High School. I even quit the pep squad because they made us cheer instead of letting us watch the game. I think that upset my sister, cause she had been big in the pep squad while in h.s.
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