Turkey Bowl VI has come to pass. To say the least, the next 364 days are gonna go by real slowly for yours truly. I didn't even feel fit to write a blog summarizing the event. But damn it, the Turkey Bowl VI Champions sacrificed blood, sweat, and turf-burn to get to the top of the mountain. And I'll be damned if I can't transcribe a few words about it. Please forgive/feel free to correct any inaccurate information or lapses in memory. Here goes nothing...
TBVI featured a dreary morning in New York's suffolk county. The sky was charcoal, the weather forecast was foreboding, and Pat Regan injured his hip in a race of dubious purpose. Nevertheless, eighteen participants invaded the St. Anthony's high school turf. A soccer game looked to threaten the festivities, and TBVI players feared they would have to seize the land, beginning-scene-of-Gladiator style. Luckily, the Europeans only required half the field and a peaceful treaty was signed.
Once pregame approached, the sky emitted some light rays of approval. For yet another year, the forecast was contradicted by nature and the Turkey Bowl was played in picture-perfect football conditions. There was a friendly meet-and-greet/stretching session. Before long, the American flag was holstered and teams were chosen. The three rosters in the round-robin format were as follows:
Team Canders:
Canders, D.
Dooley, C.
Chiarenza, M.
McShane, K.
Herg, D.
White, ?
Team McShane
McShane, D.
Silvia, J.
Reilly, R.
Shaz, T.
Vaz, T.
Tighe, M.
Team Regan
Regan, T.
Regan, P.
Farrelly, B.
Reilly, C.
Herg, T.
White, ?
Game One
The first matchup was easy to decide, as the brothers Herg were late-arriving to the game. Team Canders and Team Regan would take the field each down a twin to start the game. In the beginning, the Canders offense carved up the Regan defense to jump out to the early lead. The Regan offense was out of sync and struggled out of the gate to get anything going on offense. Chiarenza and Dooley racked up some serious YAC, as expected, and Canders did it with his legs when he didn't have open targets downfield. The one brightspot in the game for Team Regan was Bob Farrelly, who took advantage of the game being played at his place of employment. Multiple catches, including a fantastic catch-and-run for a touchdown was all team Regan could write home about all game.
Turning Point in the Game
Desperate for a spark in the middle of the game, Regan took a shot deep down the middle to Reilly. Chiarenza with great closing speed to intercept the ball. In the midst of being tackled, laterals the ball to Dooley, who runs the length of the field for the defensive score. On this day, tackling just one of these men on a given play was a tall task. To tackle them both on the same play would prove impossible. The touchdown made it something like 4-1 in favor of Canders. Game, set, match.
FINAL: TEAM CANDERS 5, TEAM REGAN 1
Game Two
As the winning team, Canders made the logical play of sitting out in game two to rest up for game three. Team McShane was a spirited bunch coming off the sideline to make their TBVI debut. Though Regan's team developed some rhythm and chemistry on offense, the defense could never get its feet underneath them. McShane's offense was quite diabolical: Silvia and Reilly running underneath and picking up YAC; while the Vaz-and-Shaz connection created nightmares running over the top. Regan was able to put together some first downs and find its way into the endzone, but McShane's squad seemed content with defensive breakdowns, knowing they would be made-up for on the offensive end. And they were. Not quite the bloodbath of game one, but McShane & co. never took its foot off the pedal.
Turning Point of the Game
A beautiful stop-and-go route by Shaz, and McShane put the deep ball on a dime for the touchdown. Not sure what the score was at the time, but being on the defensive side, I remember it was the real backbreaker. And just like that, Team Regan's day was done.
FINAL: TEAM McSHANE 5, TEAM REGAN 3
Game Three
The third game would serve as the Turkey Bowl VI championship game. It was clear the best two teams made it, and the game didn't disappoint in the least bit. The game took about as long as the first two games combined, as it was complete with defensive stops and spirited play. The Reilly-Herg matchup to the outside was worth the price of admission. Each touchdown was scratched and clawed for, as there were multiple lead changes early. Though McShane's squad fought valiantly, the big-play potential of Team Canders simply never went away. Big first down here, big pass defensed there. The game was up in the air for quite a while, but Chiarenza put the game away on a quarterback run the length of the field.
Turning Point of the Game
Canders hitting Dan Herg on a crossing route for a touchdown. It looked to be a miserable day for Herg on Reilly Island, but once he gave up on the fade route and finally made a move toward the middle of the field, he was able to escape. A big lift for Team Canders, both on the scoreboard and on their psyche.
FINAL: TEAM CANDERS 5, TEAM McSHANE 4
After the final score, many handshakes and pictures were shared. Before the postgame Chipotle banquet, votes were cast for the day's major awards. Here were the results:
Offensive MVP: Mike Chiarenza
It wasn't very hard to deduce. I mean, how many times was he mentioned already in this blog? Sticky hands, swift feet, touchdown goblin. An absolute steal on the backend of the second round for Team Canders.
Defensive MVP: Ryan Reilly
Dan Herg could have very well been Team Canders' best offensive player. Thanks to Reilly, we will never ever know.
Special Teams MVP(s): Kieran McShane and Terrence Regan
Regan had a coffin corner punt go out at the one-inch line. McShane was wonderfully spirited.
Unofficial Turkey Bowl Blog Award Winners:
Most Improved Player: T-Vaz
We all knew the kid was speedy. Getting him the damn ball was the problem in Turkey Bowls past. McShane worked him into the offense in a Brad Smithian variety of ways, and it paid serious dividends.
"His Drops Are Worse Than Mine" Award: The Whites
It was quality vs. quantity of drops in this matchup. Both had their share, but one's drops were immediately overshadowed by the other's. It was quite a fascinating dynamic.
Diabolical Rex-ecutioner Mastermind: Justin Silvia
True quarterback pressure is a true rarity in the Turkey Bowl. It's usually just too easy for the quarterback to escape and roll out. But Silvia unleashed one blitz that nearly resulted in a Canders sack, which was followed by a Shaz blindside rush that indeed brought down Canders. From the sideline, we can only assume it was drawn up by Justin...Shaz, if you did that on your own I am truly sorry.
The Denise from Taco Bell Boner of the Day: Chris Dooley
Make no mistake, Dooley had his usual stellar performance. But it was the mystery fumble that had everyone chatting. It is very hard to describe what exactly happened. Dooley running with nobody between him and the endzone...and then the ball was just gone. We have no video documenting the phenomenon, but it looked something like this. Of course, Dooley's team won the day so we can all look back on this one in good-hearted teasing.
Well, I'm pretty tired. That's the best I can do in terms of a recap...hopefully it was worth the wait. I can say for sure that everyone had a blast and Lucky Turkey Bowl #7 can't come soon enough. Until next year, warriors.
No comments:
Post a Comment