A Moment That Still Gives Goosebumps

Bouncing around today on the 50^th anniversary of the New York Knicks winning the NBA championship with a game #7 victory over the LA Lakers at Madison Square Garden.

I was 14 at the time and like I did for much of that season listened to Marv Albert call the game on radio because there was no live TV coverage here. The game was shown on tape delay.  I can still hear the Garden crowd roar when injured captain Willis Reed stepped on the floor during warm-ups. I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

Maybe it’s a case of the NFL being overly optimistic but with much fanfare they released the 2020 schedule last night which won’t mean much if we don’t get some handle on the coronavirus pandemic.  For what it’s worth the Giants have the 7^th easiest schedule based on last year’s records of their opponents while the Eagles have the 8^th easiest schedule.  The Jets have the second toughest slate of games.

The state’s longest running all-star football game will not be played this summer due to the current crisis.  The Shore Sports Network in conjunction with the Shore Football Coaches Foundation officially announced that the 43^rd All-Shore Gridiron Classic has been canceled.

The game which matches recently-graduated seniors from Monmouth and Ocean counties was scheduled for July 15^th at Toms River High School North.  The head coaches selected were Tony Grandinetti of Wall and Kyle Sandberg of Toms River East.

Preliminary rosters are available at shoresportsnetwork.com.  Just another blow for a senior class that has certainly learned the meaning of “adversity.”

While we certainly hope for the return of sporting events in the near future an announcement made by Oregon Gov. Kate Brown Thursday reminds us that it may be some time before fans are in a stadium or arena.

Brown said that large gatherings at sporting events and others should be either canceled or significantly modified through September.  That would not only impact a pair of pro teams but football programs at Oregon and Oregon State who each have three home games scheduled in that month. We’ll have to watch to see if other state leaders do the same.

STAY HEALTHY MY FRIENDS