It was May of 1997. I had turned 50 that month and had just
awakened from what I thought was going to be a routine
colonoscopy.
I felt like I had been pancaked by a Mount Union lineman when the
doctor told me I had a malignant tumor the size of a golf ball.
Followed by the news that I would be looking at surgery (a
colostomy), chemo and radiation.
My first thought was of my family. Most of my kids were still in
high school. Would I ever get to watch them graduate from high
school and college with my wife?
My second thought was of Kevin DeBonis. He had been a lineman at
St. Lawrence. He had a bout with ulcerative colitis that withered
his body. He had a colostomy, built himself back up, returned to
SLU and, with a protective device over his colostomy and became the
Saints' Lineman of the Year.
He was my inspiration through it all. I even received a letter
from him when I got home from the surgery.
I figured if he could pay football with a colostomy, I sure as
heck could write about it.
When I was diagnosed neither Castleton State or Husson even had
football. Now, Castleton, my alma mater, boasts a football team and
my daughter Virginia has graduated from Husson.
Football has always been special to me. That's why when I received
the Contributor to Football Award from the Vermont Chapter of the
National Football Foundation, it meant more to me than so many of
the other awards I have received.
Football is personal. And a Division III football player helped me
through one very tough time.
Now, every autumn and new season brings excitement and an
unbelievable appreciation for life.
So let's get to it. Ten games to look forward to in the 2010
season. That, though, is just a sliver of the main course. Every
game is special if it's your school; your team.
1. Sept. 3. Otterbein at Husson. The Eastern
Collegiate Football Conference has a lot of work ahead of it to
earn some respect. The fledgling league gets its AQ in 2011. Having
a nationally ranked team come all the way from Ohio to Bangor,
Maine, gives Husson a chance to strike a blow for the conference.
Just keeping this one respectable would be a good thing for Eages
and the ECFC.
2. Sept. 25. Wesleyan at Middlebury. There's
nothing like an opener and the New England Small College Athletic
Conference finally gets to play football after watching and reading
about everyone else. The high interest game just might be the one
that finds Wesleyan visiting Middlebury. Middlebury quarterback
Donald McKillop already owns the record book and has Panther fans
thinking about a very special season. But everything is fresh and
exciting at Wesleyan with a new staff led by successful Williams
coach Mike Whalen. This one is intriguing.
3. Sept. 25. Norwich at Mount Ida. Norwich and
the Mustangs played in the ECFC championship game last year and are
ranked 1-2 in this season's preseason poll. The Cadets have plenty
of talent returning and so do the Mustangs.
4. Oct. 2. Trinity at Williams. This one might
wind up deciding the NESCAC when all is said and done. The
perennial powers figure to put on a show.
5. Oct. 9. Amherst at Middlebury. Amherst was
undefeated in 2009. It's not inconceivable that both of these teams
might be at this point.
6. Nov. 6. Curry at Plymouth State. When the New
England winds turn cruel and the leaves have left the trees, big
games are played. You can just about count on this being one of the
biggest in the NEFC. These are postseason teams. And when they
clash in this regular season finale, you can bet the stakes will be
high.
7. Nov. 6. Castleton State at Norwich. The battle
for the Maple Sap Bucket is one of the newer rivalry games but it
is quicky gaining steam.
8. Oct. 30. Norwich at SUNY-Maritime. If the
Ida-Norwich game isn't the one that settles the ECFC, this one
will. Clayton Kendrick-Holmes has been building something special
at Maritime and this could be the year everyone notices.
9. Oct. 30. Maine Maritime at Bridgewater State.
The Mariners' triple option rolls into Massachusetts for the game
that very likely will settle the Bogan Division of the NEFC. It is
Maine's bruising ground game against the Bears' marquee back Justin
Fuller. Could be one of those two-hour games. Yes, it could be
quick, close and very, very important.
10. Nov. 13. Williams at Amherst. "The Biggest
Little Game in America" is a mouthful, but it more than lives up to
it. Crowds in the neighborhood of 10,000 are not unusual. That's
especially the case when a league title is up for grabs. That's
often the case. There is a reason why it still is the only Division
III stop ESPN's GameDay has made.
10 games to watch for 2010
Aug 30, 2010