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It’s been a busy week for me, so the ECU recap is running late. Don’t worry, it’ll happen. In the meantime, I’m going to do some shameless begging for this year’s Birddog fundraiser, the National Marathon To Finish Breast Cancer.

The usual formula for starting a fundraising campaign like this is to relate some kind of personal story about the cause. But do I really need to here? There isn’t a single person reading this that hasn’t been affected in some way by some form of cancer. You have all seen what patients and their families go through as they struggle with the physical pain and  hardships, both emotional and financial, that come with fighting the disease. You already know the feeling of hopelessness while you wish that there was anything you could do to help.

But there is something you can do. It’s said that football games are won in practice the week before. The same is true about the fight against cancer. The advances in treatment and patient care that we see today are the result of years of research. That research was made possible by the generous donations of people like you. The amount of progress we have seen in cancer treatment, even over just the last decade, is nothing short of amazing. Imagine what we might see in the next decade with the research that we can start today. Don’t wait until you or a loved one needs it. Donate now. Put in the practice before the game.

You can do so knowing that your donation will go a long way. Every single dime that you give goes to charity. 70% of your donation will fund breast cancer research at the Mayo Clinic. The remaining 30% goes toward patient care through The Donna Foundation. You will be caring for people who need it now, and laying the foundation for the care of those who will need it in the future.

That is why I am asking for your sponsorship. It’s been more than 4 years since we did the March of Dimes fundraiser. We raised almost $1000 back then, so my goal to raise $5000 is admittedly a bit ambitious. We have a lot more people reading the blog now than we did back then, though, so I’m hoping that reaching more people means raising more money. Besides, the race isn’t until February. That’s plenty of time to donate now, forget that you donated, then donate again two months from now. Donating is easy; just click on the picture to get started. Even if you can’t donate, you can still help. Post the link to Facebook. Tweet it. Spread the word.

Some of you have sent me notes saying that you like the game breakdowns so much that you’d pay for them. Instead of wasting your money on me, why not put that money to good use? As fun as it is to call for the backup quarterback and make fun of Air Force, let’s add one more play to this blog’s playbook: giving! Thanks for reading, and thanks for your help.