Playing Football

A man fired a handgun into a group of children playing football in the 400 block of N. Lakewood Ave. about 8 p.m. yesterday, wounding a teen-age boy in the leg, police said.Ernest Graham, 15, of the 400 block of N. Lakewood Ave. in East Baltimore was in good condition at Johns Hopkins Hospital with a gunshot wound in the left leg, police said.They said the man had been in a long-term dispute with several youths over playing in the street.Police were looking for a 53-year-old suspect, driving a 1976 Chevrolet pickup truck with tags 273519.

Dave Cottle had a very successful nine-year run as the head coach of the Maryland men's lacrosse team. During Friday night's Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft, the connections between the Chesapeake Bayhawks coach and his former squad were on full display. With their first two picks in the draft, the Bayhawks selected Maryland players, taking long-stick midfielder Jesse Bernhardt in the first round (No. 4 overall) and midfielder Kevin Cooper (Archbishop Spalding) in the second round at No. 16 overall.

"CONCUSSIONS ARE overrated."Thus spake one Rich Brooks, head coach of the St. Louis Rams, leader of men and apparent neurological expert.What's the big deal, Mr. Brooks was quoted as saying, with all this talk about concussions? It's not really any different from hurting other parts of your body playing football. Just a bunch of media hype, Dr. Brooks said.Now, I can't claim any of the expertise of the esteemed coach, but my limited knowledge of concussions tells me that the injury occurs when the brain bounces around inside the skull.

Former Orioles outfielder Jai Miller had committed to play college football at Stanford coming out of high school, but instead he chose to follow a dream to play professional baseball. Now, at age 27, Miller is going to give college football another chance with one of the nation's top programs. Miller, who spent last season in the Orioles' minor league system with Triple-A Norfolk and Double-A Bowie, has reportedly enrolled at Alabama for the spring semester and intends to join the football team there, according to a report from BamaOnline.

Sam "Muggsy" Feldman grew up in an era when folks didn't brag about their achievements. It was between World Wars and during the Depression era. Adding to his restraint is the fact that he played for City College in three City-Poly football games in the 1930s, and the code for both teams was "Win without boasting and lose without excuse." With some prodding, however, Feldman, 89, breaks out old scrapbooks in his Pikesville home and opens up about his experiences in the rivalry series that originated in 1889 and continues with the 120th meeting between the schools at noon today at M&T Bank Stadium.

It was the round ball that was in their plans, but now it could be the oval-shaped ball -- or both.Severn's Dennard Melton and Jeff Hatch were well on their way to college basketball a couple years ago before taking a detour to the gridiron. Neither had played a down of football before entering high school, and now the helmet sport has given each an option.At 6 feet tall and 190 pounds, Melton is a junior who runs the 40 in 4.5 seconds. Hatch is a 6-foot-8, 245-pound senior and 4.8 runner.

If you ever doubt that America is the land of opportunity, look no farther than Ricky Williams, the running back who is on his fourth or fifth chance at a pro football career with his recent return to the Miami Dolphins. Williams looks different. He's clean-shaven, from dome to chin. And he sounds a bit different. He's not utterly the vague, navel-gazing guy we had come to know. Last week, he said he wanted to be a football player and that he realized it was what most fulfilled him. "Someone asked me a question.

Severna Park senior Derek Dixon epitomizes the meaning of work ethic.Paying the price to reach his goals comes naturally to the ultra-focused Dixon. He's a rare three-sport athlete who, while playing football, also competes in fall baseball, a sport in which he is a college and pro prospect.His play at running back, cornerback and returning kicks has contributed to the Falcons' 3-0 start in football as they prepare for Saturday's visit to Calvert Hall.The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Dixon, who runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds, squats over 400 pounds and benches over 300, has 51 carries for 355 yards and three touchdowns with two additional six-pointers on punt returns.

"After three failed marriages, I know how it feels to be replaced." Terry Bradshaw On Fox's NFL pre-game show, about Jeff Garcia starting for Joey Harrington with the Detroit Lions "The time I glued my eye shut." Michael Vick Atlanta Falcons quarterback, responding to a question about his most memorable childhood moment, recalling when he mistook a bottle of glue for eye drops "Somebody has to say that `We're playing football right now. This is not a good time.'" Michael Irvin ESPN commentator, on the Minnesota Vikings' "Love Boat" scandal

ATLANTA -- Playing football is not hazardous to your health -- unless you're an offensive or defensive linemen. That was a conclusion of a study conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and released by the NFL Players Association yesterday.The study of 6,848 players who played between 1959 and 1988 revealed that 46 percent fewer players died compared to an equal number of males of similar age and race in the general population.That research suggests that former football players will live as long as the average male, although the majority is still too young to determine at what age the average player dies.

As university leaders weigh whether to cut baseball and men's soccer, Towson will be featured by the newsmagazine show "60 Minutes" as an example of a relatively unknown school trying to raise its profile with football. You can watch a preview of the segment here . Reporters for the show traveled with the Tigers to Baton Rouge to work on the story, which explains how Towson was paid $500,000 to play its game at LSU but reaped more in the way of exposure by playing one of Divsion I's best and most-popular teams.

John J. Condon, a former insurance executive and sports fan, died Sunday of pneumonia at his Columbia home. He was 87. The son of an accountant and a homemaker, John Joseph Condon was born in Canandaigua, N.Y., and moved in 1929 to Forest Park with his family. He was raised on Garrison Boulevard and Euclid Avenue. He was a 1943 graduate of Mount St. Joseph High School in Irvington, where he was a quarterback on the football team and starting catcher on the baseball team. Mr. Condon was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 1987.

John Oliver DeVries II, a retired real estate salesman and former lacrosse player, died July 7 of complications after surgery at Gilchrist Hospice. He was 83 and had lived in Roland Park. Born in Baltimore and raised on Keswick Road, he attended the old Mount Washington Country School for Boys and was a 1946 graduate of Loyola High School, where he played football and swam. He then enlisted in the Marine Corps and was stationed in Guam. He also played on a Marine football team.

There is always sadness when a former NFL player such as Dan Dierdorf limps around or there is news of another like Junior Seau committing suicide. Some of these guys were our heroes, but sympathy is about as far as it goes for me. On Thursday, lawyers representing more than 2,000 former NFL players filed a complaint against the league in U.S. District Court before Judge Anita B. Brody alleging the NFL "deliberately and fraudulently concealed from its players the link between football-related head impacts and long-term neurological injuries.

When C.J. Williams posted on his Facebook page Tuesday night that he was committing to play football at Navy, more than 500 people “liked” the status update. Finding a Football Bowl Subdivision school that liked Calvert Hall's All-Metro linebacker enough to offer a full scholarship was a bit more of a challenge. Despite having 85 tackles, two interceptions, four sacks and three forced fumbles for the No. 2 Cardinals (10-2) this fall - and adding more than 1,000 yards from scrimmage on offense - Williams for a while only had offers from three Football Championship Subdivision schools.

After his football team opened the 2011 season with a 40-17 win over Delaware last Saturday in Annapolis, Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo was beaming. Niumatalolo could not have been more proud of a quarterback, senior Kriss Proctor, who rushed for 176 yards and accounted for four touchdowns in taking over after the graduation of Ricky Dobbs.The fourth-year coach also praised his defense, with nine new starters, for making a team that reached the championship...

Westminster junior running back Jesse Astlin made quite a debut in varsity football, rushing for 94 yards on 18 carries and scoring both of his team's touchdowns in a 12-0 season-opening victory over rival South Carroll. Astlin, 5 feet 8, 140 pounds, got a chance to start in his first varsity game when senior Michael Hill couldn't play because of a knee injury. What do you like most about playing football? The adrenaline rush you get from the game. What is the hardest part of playing the game?

Recently I heard someone question why Severn freshman Denard Melton was playing football because his future is in basketball and playing football is risking that future.That's the thinking of the '90s, the era of specialization, and that is too bad. In fact, it's bad to encourage young athletes to specialize in one sport.A lot of very selfish coaches are perpetrating such fraud these days, and they profit more than the athletes. Don't count Severn football coach Jim Doyle and Admirals basketball coach Wayne Fowler among them.

Torrey Smith's mind is moving faster than his fleet feet can take the Ravens rookie wide receiver this summer, and that's causing some discomfort both inside and outside the team. It's no secret Smith, a second-round draft pick from Maryland, has struggled through his first three preseason games. He had made just two catches for 8 yards. In last week's game against the Washington Redskins, he dropped two passes, both very catchable. Less than two weeks from opening night, it's not certain Smith will be the Ravens' No. 3 receiver against Pittsburgh — or that he'll get on the field against the Steelers.

Golf Hutsell wins Maryland Open, edges Terps sophomore David Hutsell , a teaching professional at the Elkridge Club, included back-to-back eagles and two birdies in a four-hole stretch of the front nine to edge Sean Bosdosh , 19, a Maryland sophomore from Clarksburg, by a stroke to win the 90th Maryland Open championship on Wednesday at Maryland Golf and Country Club in Bel Air. Hutsell, 40, finished at 9-under-par 207...