Rush

Not often have the Ravens, who reveled in wreaking havoc with their pass rush under former defensive coordinators like Rex Ryan and Chuck Pagano, gotten close enough to the quarterback to create chaos inside the pocket this season. Their current coordinator, Dean Pees, is still searching for some solutions to rectify that. The numbers are alarming. The Ravens are tied for 26th in the league with 13 sacks, and a lack of consistent pressure on quarterbacks is probably the main reason why the Ravens defense is ranked 22nd against the past despite its depth and talent in the secondary.

Joe Thomas has been voted to the Pro Bowl five times, has the security of a seven-year, $84 million extension that he signed in August 2011 and is widely regarded as one of the top offensive tackles in the NFL. But Thomas has yet to get a taste of the playoffs and with the Cleveland Browns limping into Sunday's game against the Ravens with a 2-6 record, the chances for this season fade each week. Thomas was candid in discussing the frustration of playing for an organization that last made the postseason in 2002.

During recent election cycles, the turnout of early voters at Carroll County's only early-voting polling place, the Westminster Senior Activities Center on Stoner Avenue, was at times so light that the campaign volunteers and poll workers easily outnumbered voters. Not so this time around. At around 11 a.m., on Oct. 31, the parking lot at the center was nearly full, and spaces were at such a premium that motorists entering often had to wait for someone else to leave to get a space.

Pop tunes blasted from loudspeakers into the cavernous warehouse at the Maryland Food Bank on Thursday, energizing about 300 volunteers filling 15,000 boxes with holiday staples for the needy. "You can get exercise, help those who don't have a meal for the holiday, and then there's the whole camaraderie thing with your co-workers," said Gerri Gardner, the liveliest of the CSX railroad's packing team, which included workers from MTA and MARC trains. This time of year, the bank, which distributes food to about 600 soup kitchens, pantries and shelters across the state from its Halethorpe headquarters, gears up for its own Thanksgiving rush.

Fourteen years ago on the outskirts of Ann Arbor, Mich., an 8-year old boy learned to be a football player. In the blistering heat of summer, the boy climbed and descended the concrete steps of Eastern Michigan's Rynearson Stadium, past empty bleachers as sweat dripped down his face. After, he would run route after route on the field, sprinting and chasing his older brother. As the young running back worked, his father watched, giving instruction. For years, through high school, the boy, Travis Davidson, would run those steps and those routes, never fully grasping why his father had him do this.

- Standing in the Houston Texans' backfield with his arms raised toward the sky, Ravens outside linebacker Terrell Suggs celebrated after slamming quarterback Matt Schaub to the ground. It was the exclamation point of Suggs' surprisingly speedy return from a partially torn right Achilles tendon suffered in late April during the weekend of the NFL draft. Although the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year wasn't happy with the Ravens' 43-13 debacle of a loss to the Texans on Sunday at Reliant Stadium, Suggs did serve notice that he has recovered from a serious injury initially expected to sideline him until much later in the season.

Well, it has been a quiet week at the Under Armour Performance Center. Let's see, where to begin? Ray Lewis and Lardarius Webb were lost for the season with injuries. A bunch of Ravens were caught in a nightclub during a shooting. Ed Reed dropped a bombshell about a torn labrum in his shoulder that was previously unknown. And Terrell Suggs teased everyone by saying he might play superhero and return early from that partially torn Achilles tendon when the Ravens take on the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium.

Under the Friday night lights at Homewood Field, the Johns Hopkins running attack could not be stopped. Tied at 28 heading into the fourth quarter, the Blue Jays scored 21 unanswered points in the game's final 14 minutes, including a 63-yard run by Jonathan Rigaud, to seal a 49-35 victory over Gettysburg, and remain undefeated on the season. Rigaud, JD Abbott and quarterback Robbie Matey combined for 372 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground. With 7:22 remaining, Matey capped a 12-play drive with a 3-yard touchdown run to give the Blue Jays (7-0, 6-0 Centennial Conference)

Terrell Suggs stepped out of a storm of speculation and into a semicircle of reporters Thursday, addressing the conflicting reports about whether he had decided to play Sunday against the Houston Texans. In his first group interview since spring workouts, Suggs shot down a report that claimed that the plan was for his family to fly to Houston to watch him make his triumphant return. However, he didn't shoot down the possibility that he will play. “If it didn't come from Coach [John]

North Harford literally ran right over C. Milton Wright on Thursday night. The Hawks rushed for 394 yards and four touchdowns, overwhelming the visiting Mustangs with their ground game en route to a 42-6 victory in an Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference matchup. North Harford coach Ken Brinkman said he wanted to see what the Mustangs would be able to handle. The Hawks started running early, and C. Milton Wright wasn't able to stop them as North Harford ran left, right and up the middle.