Armchair Coach: Lessons From Week 2 In The NFL

The big news to start with from football this week has to be Maryland’s big win against Cal. The Terps may have put on the most complete performance I have ever seen from them. The Defensive line had not been in the backfield so much since Shawn Merriman left for the NFL. Kevin Barnes is looking like the next Maryland DB to have a future in the NFL; he has shown the ability to make the big interceptions and the big hit. He hit Heisman trophy candidate Jahvid Best so hard he threw up on the field. Chris “Big Game” Turner played an unbelievable game; now only if he could play halfway decent against the non-ranked teams. Continue reading Armchair Coach: Lessons From Week 2 In The NFL

Armchair Coach: “Do Not Boo Your QB” And Other Lessons From Week 1 In The NFL

Well, week one of the NFL season is in the books. After last week the only thing that I am certain of is that the NFL is unpredictable. Week one provided plenty of surprises some because of unexpected performances and some because of injury. I think the best thing I can do is review some of the surprising things that happened.

Things I thought I knew: Continue reading Armchair Coach: “Do Not Boo Your QB” And Other Lessons From Week 1 In The NFL

It Doesn’t Matter About Wins And Losses When You’re At The Game With Team 21085

Team 21085 wants to know: Joe Flacco, where you have been all our lives? Deemed player of the game, (arguably…he had loads of competition - namely, C-Mac, Leron McClain and the entire O-line) by Mike Dahl, Jr. (Mt. St. Joe’s sophomore and varsity football player who recorded a sack Friday night from J-towne,) the rookie QB put on quite a show. Incidentally, Mike and his younger brother Jake are honorary seat-fillers on Team 21085. Continue reading It Doesn’t Matter About Wins And Losses When You’re At The Game With Team 21085

New Friends, New Relationships, New Opportunities - Molly

I’m no computer wiz, that is for sure, but it seems to me that the Dagger just gets better looking with age. I mean, the content is awesome, don’t get me wrong. But the tools- the map, the events, to name a few- just keep evolving. Every day when I get my email about a new post, it seems I notice something new and different. Down the road I see visions of Dagger being a one-stop-shop for Harford County and I’m damn glad to be a part of it. Continue reading New Friends, New Relationships, New Opportunities - Molly

Pigskin Prognosticating: Take A Stab At Picking NFL Winners Week By Week

“Hit, Hustle, Believe.” A phrase I read on a tattered tee on one of the coaches for the Joppatowne-Edgewood Recreation Football team. Hit. Hustle. Believe. If only it were that simple.

Through the eyes of Ravens’ fans we have only one of those resources available to us: Believe. Sure we can hit Steelers fans with our venomous words and we can hustle with vigor through our chants to Baltimore’s pride, Dee-Fense (clap, clap); De-Fense (Clap, clap) but to believe? Continue reading Pigskin Prognosticating: Take A Stab At Picking NFL Winners Week By Week

Hoops Pro Jai Lewis Comes Home From Israel To Put A Dagger Writer In Her Place

He hails from Aberdeen, stands 6′7″, weighs 275 pounds, led his college basketball team to the NCAA Final Four, was signed out of college to play football in the NFL and now is a professional basketball player holding his own in Israel.

She hails from Joppatowne, stands 5′5″, won’t tell me how much she weighs, admits to occassionally “horsing around” with her neices on the basketball court, formerly covered all manner of sports for the local media and is now holding her own as sports director of The Dagger.

He is Jai Lewis. She is Molly Lauryssens. And at 8 p.m. Wednesday at ESPN Zone in downtown Baltimore’s Inner Harbor the two forces will meet in a head-to-head shoot out when Jai returns to town. Continue reading Hoops Pro Jai Lewis Comes Home From Israel To Put A Dagger Writer In Her Place

Super Bowl Sunday: Music, Food, Celebrities and, yes, even a little Football

Not a fan of the Patriots? Not a fan of the New York football Giants? Maybe football is just not your thing? Surely you know by now that there are other reasons that people tune in to the ‘big game,’ which airs Sunday on Fox at precisely 6:17 pm. Here is a sampling of some of my faves:

- First and foremost, I have to tell you about one of the greatest days that my husband, Neil, and I shared together. We were fortunate enough to be at the dance when the Baltimore Ravens beat the New York Giants in Tampa at Super Bowl XXXV. Let me tell you something: watching the half-time show was impressive. The performances were good, yes, but what I am really referring to is the construction and deconstruction of the stage on the field and how quickly they got it done.

That year MTV was responsible. After the first half convened and the players went to their locker rooms, the mammoth stadium screens came on and Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler and Chris Rock did pre-recorded skits with some of the musicians featured in the show. This bought time for the stage to get set. The field was dark. We could see all kinds of goings-on (when we weren’t watching the skits). It was amazing because once the show started: lights, camera, action! It was a full-scale production going on. Those girls and guys who worked diligently behind the scenes deserve major props. Continue reading Super Bowl Sunday: Music, Food, Celebrities and, yes, even a little Football