‘Creed’ and Monmouth Hawks pack a punch

I was not all that excited when I first heard the movie “Creed” was coming out on Thanksgiving weekend because I expected it to be another attempt to resurrect the “Rocky” franchise which did not end well. However the trailer looked really good and early reviews were positive so we ended up going last weekend and to be honest I was blown away.

As one reviewer said it’s the best Rocky movie since the original in 1976 although to be honest it’s not really another in the series because the story is not centered on Sylvester Stallone’s now-famous character but rather the one played by 28-year old Michal B. Jordan. Jordan is probably best known for his TV roles in “Friday Night Lights” and “The Wire” and in Creed he is nothing short of spectacular while Stallone is very good as his trainer.

I don’t want to spoil it for you but there are similarities in this and the original Rocky but one difference is how much more realistic the fight scenes appear. You actually feel like you’re watching a real boxing match. Not only is this one of my favorite movies of the year but the biggest surprise in how good it is. You can probably tell I’m a frustrated movie reviewer; it was next on my career choice list.

I know many of you are not sports fans but two thumbs up for all the positive attention surrounding the Monmouth University men’s basketball team. For those unaware Monmouth is off to a 4-2 start which includes wins over Notre Dame, UCLA and USC. Yes the Hawks from West Long Branch have beaten the then 17th ranked Fighting Irish, Bruins and Trojans and have become the early season toast of the college basketball world.

Part of that is due to the attention surrounding four players who mainly sit on the end of the bench but whose animated celebrations of in-game highlights have gained national attention. Called “the most popular bench in America” the squad has created a twitter account @MonmouthBench which already has over 3,200 followers. Among the members of the squad is junior Greg Noack who writes a weekly blog for shoresportsnetwork.com.

The Hawks have road games at Canisius & Niagara this weekend as they begin their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference schedule. All Monmouth road games can be heard on our 1160 & 1310AM as well as shoresportsnetwork.com.

Coming off a season in which they won a state sectional championship and advanced to the Group 3 finals the Toms River South Boys’ Soccer team will celebrate their success and hold a fundraiser at Sundae’s on Route 166 in South Toms River tomorrow from 6-10pm.