|
Over the past few weeks, my teammates and I have sat silently and listened to the garbage coming across the wire about the mighty Bandicoots and the ease in which they will win Cork Bowl XI. Today the silence is broken. As the spokesman for the Ermine, I have discussed these remarks with my teammates before releasing this message. I felt it was important for a well-written, organized statement to be made for the first time in a while. I have never been one to be opinionated or confrontational, but I need to clarify some of the recent remarks. I will be the first to admit that if this game were played by posting remarks about which team will win, the Bandicoots would win easily. That's easy to see. However, games aren't played on paper - they are played inside TV sets...I mean...they are played on the field. No predictions will come from me. They never have and they never will. What I will say is that the Ermine will come to play. That's the only promise I will make. This team is full of winners. Winners that are amused as the Bandicoot players make fools of themselves by going on and on talking about their total domination, extensive defensive packages, knocking out Sanders at QB, ...zzzzzzzzzzzz.. Talk is cheap, and the "Cooties" have plenty of it. Our team doesn't need to sling mud. We will prove our worth on the hallowed ground of Corklestick Park on December 15th. With that in mind, I would like to respond to some of the things that have been said. The first point is the reoccuring theme of the "proven receivers" of the Bandicoots and their similar styles of play. The only things the Bandicoot receivers have proven is a remarkable tendency to drop passes. This isn't a cheapshot at the players, it's simply a fact. If I were Willy, I'd be thankful to have a player like Henney to look for when nobody else can catch a pass instead of questioning if he will be able to handle the physicalness of the game. Secondly, Greg Howard has stated he will be a "dominant factor again." AGAIN being the key word. Coming from someone that has been guarded by Josh Helton, Kevin Ryan, and Ryan Tomlinson over the past few seasons, the word dominant shouldn't be thrown around like that. (No offense to my two teammates). Catching 8-10 passes and scoring a few times is hardly "dominating" Cork Bowl. If that's the case then Tomlinson dominated Cork Bowl VII (11 catches, 2 TD's). I'm not saying Greg won't play well this year. He's one of the league's up-and-comers. What I will say is that it's definitely time to put up or shut up. He'll be looked upon to make plays for the "Cooties" instead of being a 3rd or 4th option. As for the brilliant defensive packages to be showcased, I'm intrigued. Go ahead and bring Greg and Williamson on the blitz if you like. Heck bring all five guys if you want, but don't complain when the Colonel rushes for 10 touchdowns and picks apart the shaky secondary for 15 more. The Colonel feels just as comfortable out of the pocket as he does in the pocket so if you feel you want to try to pressure him, be our guest. To make it official, no more players should feel the need to dedicate their performance to Mr. Newell. The Commissioner informed me today that Cork Bowl XI has been deemed "A Farewell to Kirby Newell". Any comments are welcomed, but they are not necessary. The Kirbster will be enshrined into Cork Bowl lore before the game this year in a pregame ceremony. |