Week 1 dominance.

It's tough to know exactly where Penn State stands as a top team in America after week 1, but I am a firm believer that what I saw this past Saturday was one of the most exciting teams that I've seen from a Penn State team perspective.

It's impossible to play a perfect game, but yesterday, from a statistical and emotional standpoint, was pretty close.  In fact if you wanted to pick the best performance by any team in the country, it would be hard pressed to say there was a better one than what Penn State displayed in their opener.

Idaho clearly was not anywhere near Penn State's level, but I wouldn't necessarily put them as worse than Middle Tennessee State or Florida Atlantic.  It's your typical cup cake starter game, one that hopes to establish momentum and really get an easy win.  There are pros and cons to these games that I don't want to get into, but for our purposes, let's assume that it is what it is.  An opportunity to play a team that we think might run some similar offensive and defensive schemes that our other opponents might employ. 

However, what Penn State did yesterday is almost to a tee what you want to have happen in one of these games.

Let's start with the offensive line play.  While not perfect, it was certainly the most complete and dominant game that I've seen ANY Penn State line play.  It's only one game but you have to give the lions share of the game to the offensive line.  They gave up zero sacks.  They help deliver creases and holes that allowed for big time runs by multiple backs.  While Devyn Ford will get the statistical credit in the paper, I would like to point out that his electric 81 yard run was successful due to a huge hole opened up by a strong double team by the center and guard and the tackle locking out the edge.

The quarterback position was the one that for most fans held the most interest.  Sean Clifford has been talked about as someone that has been impressive at practice but a player that fans have had smaller exposure to.  Will Levis would be getting his first real game experience.  While I wouldn't describe either of there numbers as incredible, I did think this game showcased what they were good at.  Both can run and are willing to do so, and both are willing to take shots down the field while still taking care of the football.  There were zero turnovers from the quarterback position. 

The receiving core and backs were at times electric and for the most part efficient.  I didn't see many drops, and I thought the effort to maximize plays was there.  It's clear that overall, this team might be as explosive as any team before it.  There is speed and play making talent across the entire spectrum.

But what I really loved about this game for the offense came at the very end.  When Nick Eury went legend mode and ran six times, for 44 yards and scored a touchdown.

Eury is a redshirt junior, a kid that earned his spot as a preferred walk-on and by all accounts a little bit behind the other four running backs in the room that played Saturday.  He is the underdog that every team needs to keep them grounded, keep them glued.  Because sometimes it's that spirit of the underdog that helps create championship habits.

I was enthralled to see the support of the team being constant.  When Pat Friarmeuth went down after a hard collision, he had two teammates there to pick him up and walk with him back to the sideline.  As the starters left the field they remained engaged, looking on as their replacements got opportunities to shine as well.

After Brandon Smith delivered a hard hit late in the fourth quarter that will be shown on multiple highlight reels, I saw Franklin pull him aside and coach about why it's important to wrap and to avoid tackling with just a shoulder as he was then put under review for targeting. 

I imagine while Franklin loves the enthusiasm and the ability to hit hard, he doesn't want to have his linebackers suspended or thrown out of a game.

To me, this team may have it all.  In addition to being physically one of the most gifted teams in recent memory, they seem to have the enthusiasm, camaraderie, drive, and discipline to reach those ultimate goals. 

In order to do that, they need to continue to keep pushing each other and striving to do even better this next week against Buffalo.  If want to play and beat Michigan, Ohio State or Clemson and Alabama, then they have to push on a Tuesdays and Wednesday of Buffalo week to keep making sure they're prepared and ready when that moment comes.

I'm not saying after one game, that this is the best Penn State team of all-time.  I'm not saying this team is even better than last years team.  But I am saying from a day 1 first impression of Penn State football in 2019, I have not seen a team since the early 1990's look that dominant.

Football Nirvana

The cool, seemingly ethereal air surrounds me.  The trees and wildlife still in their last throes of summer, lush and full of color.  The sun still beaming brightly as a reminder of just how brilliant life can be.

I'm out running, listening to a the song "Scrub" by Mike Fiki.  A song that both exudes confidence while still being cognizant of a struggle.  I'm feeling good, my lungs and feet in rhythm.  I'm trying to push myself, while keeping aware of what my body feels like. 


I finish running into my driveway, gasping for air and quickly taking a seat on my porch.

I'm looking up into the blue and white sky over the tops of the dense green trees.  I'm looking and feeling at a place that feels near perfection to me. 

"This, this is what I've been waiting for,"  I think to myself, looking as I watch a slow fading sunset in the distance.

It's a Friday and for the first time since the fall of 2005, I am free for football weekends.

For the first time, I feel as though I'm joining the rest of the working world and so many of my peers.

Over the past 13 or so years, I have enjoyed working in the service industry as a bartender and  manager, yet the demands of the job entail a lot of weekend work, especially during events such as home football games.

After that amount of time, you kind of forget how great weekends really are. Consecutive days away from school or work and the freedom to do whatever other activities you might enjoy.  The ability to plan and meet friends or family becomes more manageable.

To have that again feels serene.

For the first time since my freshman year, I will be able to attend almost every game in one season at Penn State. 

The sense of anticipation continues to grow, verging on a sense of near hysteria.  The optimism and energy in town feels like a pathogen bursting into our bodies and giving way to an abnormal upbeat mood swing. 

Most pundits have pegged Penn State to be the third big ten team behind Ohio State and Michigan, but I think the truth is that no one really knows.  It feels with Urban Meyer leaving Ohio State, as well as its starting quarterback, they could be had.  Michigan feels like it should be better by now since they paid Jim Harbaugh a ton of money and have had some great recruiting classes.

The reality is I think we just defaulted into thinking the teams will be where they almost always are without any real consideration as to who actually may have the best team on the field.

So to me, this season will be fun, because I think of it as a season of opportunity.  That this year could be something special as the team comes of age.  All the reports seem to indicate they have some really great players all over the field and that the athletic talent at Penn State overall is about as good as it's ever been.

I think the things that will separate them from the other teams will come down to the intangibles. 

The ability to read and understand the game as it unfolds. 

The ability to deal with adversity. 

The camaraderie, trust, and love it takes to help each other through a demanding physical and mental season.

The ability to push one another to be better.

Now for the first time in a long time, I feel more a part of that again.  It feels like a long lost connection to my past has come back to me.  A welling of nostalgia and peace seems to be putting me under a spell where the world appears without flaws.

For me that is what I feel going into tomorrow.

Football Nirvana.

Lessons From The Past.

I didn't exist during World War II.  I didn't exist during the Civil War.  Not for Vietnam or Korea.  I didn't live through the 60's and and 70's during the Civil Rights Movement or the Great Depression from 1929 to 1939. 

I live in the world of today, and what I see today has, for the first time, made me feel as though America, and maybe the world at large, is approaching a crossroads again. 

We stand in a time where the world is getting significantly warmer, there are large migrations occurring due to the corruption of governments and war.  Our ability to trust one another seems incredibly fractured, especially at the highest levels. 

I want to take the lessons of years past, and try to figure out how to come out on the other side and bring about the changes in the world that lead to peace, that lead to an improved and better world.

In those times, there was typically a leader that preached unity and passion for humanity that helped defeat those that championed greed and exploitation  While every leader in the history of civilization had faults, it is those that led with compassion for people, that acted more often in kindness than in selfishness, that are looked back upon with the most reverence.

It saddens me on a regular basis that people want to go back to ideas popularized by segregationists, by fascists, by xenophobes and racists.  It is those ideologies that I thought America has evolved to leave behind in order to help create a system where we attempt to treat all people equally.  America, in my view, has been under near constant improvement over the past two centuries.

America has never reached its ideal.  From its inception it wasn't even close to the values that are framed in the constitution.  Land would become stolen.  People from various minority groups would be treated as sub-human.  Soldiers were lied to and sent to die and kill for reasons of greed and pride. It has taken the country over 200 years to become even close to the dream that is talked about so often. 

Yet we have made strides.  Long overdue corrections were made as slavery finally became abolished, women and minorities became able to vote; that those that identify as gay to be able to become married and have the same rights as anyone else. 

It is not perfect, and prejudices and wrongs remain to be sure, but we are still improving.

We cannot give ourselves moral leniency now, and we must move forward in a way that cares about all people, and not just those that we might associate with. 

In my opinion, there are powerful people who inflame every difference and disagreement in an effort to control and shape things.  That instead of talking about the things that unite us, certain leaders continue to try and divide us, trying to use sarcasm and hate to incite outrage and emotional volatility. 

Most of the country wants universal healthcare taken care of by their tax dollars.

Most of the country wants universal background checks on guns.

Most of the country wants marijuana to be treated and regulated like alcohol.

Most of the country feels that a person's sexuality or gender should have no bearing on how they're treated or their access to employment or education.

Most of the country believes security in the voting system needs to be improved and that, in general, our elections and system needs to be far more transparent.

If we are to move forward and get better in this society and in this age, then we must take the lessons of the past and apply them. 

We move forward based on the things that unify us, the things that make us ALL human and not on the things that divide.

What is an American Today? Unalienable.

I've been busy the past few months even though on the surface it feels on some level that I haven't been producing as much as I'd like. 

I've been busy listening though.  Listening to the other side.  Listening to journalists I hadn't seen or heard before.  Listening to the whole of the problems of America.

Like it or not, this country has problems that we cannot run from.  We can't hide and duck our heads, and we can't pretend anymore that the time and place we live in, is anything like the world that existed before.

Climate Change
Nuclear Weapons Expansion
Immigration
White Nationalism/Supremacy
Medical Systems
Gun Violence
The Wealth Gap
Taking Care of Veterans
Education
Criminal Justice Reform
The Legalization of Cannabis
Addressing the Opioid Epidemic and Ending the War on Drugs.

After my last day of work, I listened to a family member talk about the financial impact of Cancer.

It seemed wrong to me that for them, and countless others that live in America today that they would have to choose between health care and financial ruin.  It seems wrong that the society of today continues to make money on the life and death of its fellow citizens.  The society I would like to be a part of would not put profits and money ahead of the health and well being of it's citizens. 

I'm sweating as I listen to how it would cost an extra $3,000 for this test or the next, or chose between doctors and hospitals, and I realize that I'm sweating.  While the sun is setting behind the trees, it still feels about 90 degrees and humid.  Everything feels sticky and heavy. 

My mind wanders to the doomsday predictions about how our climate is changing, and it's doing so faster and faster.  It was another record high today, if not here, then somewhere else.  Each month it seems like there's another unique heatwave or polar vortex caused by the ever disintegrating glaciers that continue to shed chunks of iceberg at an alarming rate.

I scroll through Facebook and find an account advocating for violence towards local protesters, suggesting they be run over like Heather Heyer who was in Charlottesville protesting Neo-Nazis.

I think of the veterans who have come home and have to come to grips with the things they've seen, heard, and at times, what they've done.  How veterans of the Vietnam and Iraq wars are still dealing with the trauma caused by the hell we had them visit.  I work with a former Navy veteran and while he empathizes with a lot of my positions, there is a feeling about the people that he sees who can't get the resources that they need.

That we need to take care of some people who already live here too.

I agree, but what is wrong with doing both?

The politicians are trying to divide us on these issues.  That having it one way is right, and the others are wrong, even when the problems are the same.

Take the issue of immigration that is going on now.  Nearly everyone would be in agreement that there is room for people to become part of a robust economy and contribute to our society.  That is what we would want to encourage.  Our ideals SHOULD attract people to our communities and we can share in our collective well-being.  We should WANT people to come over and be part of America.

Yet due to the influx and sheer amount of people it has become difficult to help these people quickly become documented citizens of the United States. 

Well, we could allocate resources to help them become citizens.  Better yet, we could offer jobs to those like returning veterans or new recruits that want to help this country become even better, by helping those that want to come to America.

I like the idea of setting up clinics and schools in the south to help assimilate more immigrants.  Sending those that would work on behalf of the state to help people become American.  More people working and creating jobs, would in turn, help our economy.

That is the America I like to think of.  A "kind" America.  One that saw the errors of its ways when it came to slavery and to segregation.  That found itself bemoaning the choices that led to the perpetual wars in Vietnam and Iraq.  That realized the camps set up to detain people of Japanese descent after Pearl Harbor and that the camps used to imprison immigrant children and families are wrong and are against the values of this nation. 

When will that America step up again?

To me an American is not bound by where they were born.  To be an American, to me, is only to be human and to believe in humanity itself. 

We often quote the famous phrase of "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" but we overlook the first words of "Unalienable".

To me those words matter as much, if not more, than the others.  That no matter who you are, whether or not you were born here or you arrived here by ANY other means, you have those particular rights, and that our government was sworn to protect them.

America is more than a country; it is an idea.  An idea based on freedom, but also ensuring that every person that sets foot on its soil is treated as somebody that has those unalienable rights.  That we look at our fellow men and women from all races and religions and see a person of value and possessing the exact same unalienable rights that we have ourselves.  For we are equal in our humanity.

America has been wrong, and it has been cruel.  Yet there is another America that has been kind and has been just, and I'm hoping that as time moves forward, we will see that America again.

The Lakers Assemble Their Monstars.

For a while it seemed as though the only Championship LeBron James might get in LA was one he'd win in Space Jam 2.  That his coming to LA was going to be about making movies and money ratherer than making making a contender.

But now, as the Lakers trade a young core group of players as well as draft picks for the promise of a second mega-star, it seems destiny has come to fruition out on the west coast.

There is no more glamorous a team in basketball than the Los Angeles Lakers. 

They play and win with a certain flair. 

Magic.  Kareem.  Shaq.  Wilt.  Kobe.

Star upon basketball star has resided with the team and genuinely added to the legacy of one of the most winningest franchises in sports.

They have been the picture of success for decades in the NBA, and while they may have struggled for the past ten or so years since the injuries of Kobe Bryant took their final toll, they now have the stars that they so often covet in James and Anthony Davis.

The acquisition of  Davis for some very good, but very young pieces could pay huge dividends in the short term, and if they can get consistent play and shooting from some of the surrounding pieces, almost certainly puts the team in contention for a wide open Western Conference next year.

The Lakers have their dream pairing again and it seems like destiny that they will find themselves back on top of the NBA sooner rather than later.  There will be highlight reel passes, great dunks, incredible three's and  hard-nosed defensive plays.  In short, the Lakers are expected to look like the Lakers of old, if not better.

While Durant joining the Warriors might have been a move that nearly broke the NBA, the Davis trade and potential subsequent signing of a notable free agent such as Kawhi Leonard or Kemba Walker make the Lakers look like a team moving from lottery team to title favorites.

There are moves still to be made, as finding consistent shooters and defenders will become a priority.  But now the Lakers two stars who are versatile, effective, and play with enough flash that all of the eyes will be on them to start the year.  But without question, the Lakers have two players that will cause huge headaches for the opposing team night in and night out.

I think the roster will need to come together and understand what works best for them and how to play as a group, but the talent at the very top has a great balance to it.  Anthony Davis is just 26, with his best years about to come up.  LeBron is probably not in his athletic prime but still has an incredible skill level and is still one of the top players in the league.  And still waiting behind both is Kyle Kuzma, a young player who has the makings of a potential all-star.

The Lakers cannot afford injuries though.  The health of LeBron and Davis is paramount to their success.  There is no safety net at the moment and any help will have to come from unheralded and undrafted players.  If one of the big stars goes down for any serious amount of time, the team risks imploding on itself again, and thoughts of doubt and failure may creep into the psyche of the group.

There are those that do not want the Lakers to go back on top again.  They can be fairly viewed as a pretentious and arrogant organization with pompous and unlikable players.  These moves and the ensuing storm of media coverage will become a source of resentment  for some who see the Lakers as an evil empire that uses money, fame and geographical location as a way to gain a huge advantage over smaller markets. 

I'm excited.  I think they have an opportunity to be something special for the next few years of Lebron's  contract, but also longer if they can retain Kuzma with Davis into the future. They may also still attempt to sign Kemba Walker who is coming off an All-Star season, or even Kawhi Leonard, fresh from an NBA Finals MVP run.

It's still a bit hard to see the very end, but it's clear to see that the shine is coming back to LA far sooner than anticipated.  The last season that ended with dysfunction and turmoil is already behind them and the optimism of a return to glory is already here and now.

Welcome back to the fun of watching the best players in basketball playing in the southern California sun. 

Welcome back to the stories of drama and intrigue, where sports and Hollywood mix with big contracts, big egos and big trades.

Welcome back to the Lake Show.

The Season Of Now

It has finally become warm here in State College; the winter finally retreating with its dreary monotone color palette and being replaced by the deep blues, greens and yellows that seem to bring the world back to life.

It's a time to relax and enjoy the longer evenings with a libation of choice. 

It's a time to get up early and do that early morning exercise routine.

It can be a time to fall in love for either the first or the thousandth time.

It's summer.

I have mostly seen this season through the eyes of an adolescent. When I hear "summer," it's usually synonymous with "break," an interlude to the rest of the yearly toils and generally living care free until fall, when typically, school started again. 

The fact that I reside in a major college town only reinforces the dynamic as the economics of State College are driven by the university.  If you've ever been around the town in the summer versus while school is in session, you become acutely aware that this town can become a low key suburban oasis that hinges on a group of people that care about one another.

I think most people want to leave our cares with our winter clothes and focus on the time at hand, because we know that this season of the sun, great as it is, will not last. 

We vacation in the summer, embracing the relaxing cool, blue waters of the beach or pool.  Maybe fly from the peak of a tire swing into a creek or lake.  We invest in the stories of the blockbuster movies or dive deep into the prose of a favorite new author.

There are those projects around the house that need done; the garden needs tended, and fresh vegetables from the store or garden need grilled.  We enjoy going out to the restaurants and bars that specialize with outdoor seating and seasonal drinks.  Life seems to overflow at times, and it feels like you can sense it in the very air around you.

It's THAT time of year.

A time to take that trip that you wanted to take.  Put time into your projects that you say you want to do, and do them.  Take a lazy day and go to a park and just take in some nature.  Do what feels good to YOU, and feel fulfilled at the end of a summer's night. 

Take pictures of the memories you make, even if you chose not to share them on social media.

Take the chance on something new and different.

Don't look back, and don't second guess yourself.

Enjoy the now. 

Enjoy the summer.

Thanking Both Mothers.

Mother's Day comes every year and every year I see the same sort of messages.

 "Thank you for your sacrifices"

 "Thank you for loving me"

 "Thank you for teaching me right from wrong."

I've said them all myself and they all ring true.

This year, however, I want to honor my mom for something else that not all mothers do. I want to thank my mother for educating me about how to treat women and show my respect for the opposite sex.

I also want to thank my mother-in-law for raising a woman that has become my world and the love of my life.

As I experience this world it has become clear that while nearly all mothers care about their kids, they do not approach teaching their kids about sex and relationships in the same way.

I have run into far too many men who think of women as a lesser sex, that on some level they only exist to help make children and for the pleasure of men.

I have interacted with too many women who are taught that their value is in being pretty and to keep men happy or to attract a mate that can provide.

I've watched in horror as some men I once considered friends come from behind a woman to grab a breast or slap an ass.

I've listened to misogynistic rants from former coworkers and classmates that women need to worry more about their weight and getting on treadmills rather than valuing what they have to say and how they think.

They're called dumb or sluts and are demeaned for no other reason but for the man to feel superior.

I am proud to not be one of those men, and I owe a great deal of that to my mother.

It is not that I do not have awareness of or appreciation for physical beauty. I don't think that it's possible for a human to not be aware and conscious of those things.

When I fell in love with my wife, there was (and still remains) a vibrant physical attraction.

However if it weren't for my mother teaching me the values of respect for women and understanding and sympathizing the humanity of women, I think I would be blind to some of the most beautiful aspects of my wife.

My wife has the kindest soul that I've ever encountered.  Someone who thinks of others and would be willing to sacrifice time and money to make others happy, especially the less fortunate.

When I met my wife, she was working as a teacher for low income students in rural Pennsylvania.  She didn't make much money and the fact that she was falling in love with me, a person who wasn't exactly on the fast track to wealth working as a barback in a college bar, told me that character mattered more to her than material things.

I credit her mother for teaching her that a man is more than a job and a source of provision.

My wife has strength that sometimes even she doesn't recognize thanks to a mother that taught her to refuse to back down.

Not all women have the courage that my wife displayed when she told me about how my drinking would make her scared and that it was becoming a problem.

In some circles of this society women are taught to be passive by example and they endure physical and mental abuse because of it.  My wife refused to be one of those women.

It is because my mother taught me how to have empathy for women and to see beyond sex appeal that I get to experience true happiness with my wife.  It is because my wife's mom taught her to stand up for herself in a relationship, that ours was saved.

Mothers in this world have a difficult job teaching morality, self sufficiency, and constantly giving love.

Today I want to thank the mothers in my life that went further by helping educate a son to not see women as objects, and helped raise a daughter that sought equality in a relationship. And as a team, unbeknownst to them, created a couple that is based on pure love.