2003 Houston Bowl: Shalimar Brazier Brings the Pain

Looking for some late June motivation? This was 9 years ago but MAN was this an awesome hit. The 2003 EV1.net Houston Bowl didn’t feature a lot of Navy highlights since Texas Tech won 38-14, but this will hit will live on for years. Texas Tech’s QB B.J. Symons actually lost a tooth. You can see him handing it to a coach at the end of the clip. To his credit, Symons didn’t miss a snap.

OLD STUFF

I like old Navy sports footage. I’m always looking for it. Here’s a clip I found at a used book store that you might find interesting. This is some old newsreel footage of the beginning of Navy football practice in 1929.

Some cutting-edge training techniques there. I like the glimpse of the Yard from 80 years ago, too.

By the way, over on the message board we’re talking basketball, football superlatives, and moving the Hawaii game next year. Make sure you check it out!

Loose Change 2/1/08

Odds & ends you may have missed over the past week:

Pylon-gate

Just in case you wanted to relive the pain.

It’s funny to lurk on Utah message boards and read some the comments about the play.  “The pylon was in the wrong place! It was placed out of bounds!” Some real football experts there. Oh well.

Alton Grizzard

The Army-Navy game is today. It’s one of the most celebrated days of the year. But today is also December 1; 14 years ago today, Alton Grizzard was killed. Please take a moment today to remember him.

I remember the first time I saw Alton Grizzard. I was 10 years old, and I had just moved from San Diego to Virginia Beach. We finally lived close enough to Annapolis to get to a Navy game. So I was with my father at my first Navy game, and Navy’s offense took the field. My father started to chuckle. I asked him why he was laughing, and he said something about one of the linebackers being lost. Alton definitely looked like a linebacker with that big ol’ neck roll he wore. That neck roll was a symbol of the toughness that he brought to the quarterback position and a sign of things to come.

What are your favorite Alton Grizzard memories?

eBay Scavenger Hunt, Vol. 2

If you’re like me and love collecting old Navy football footage, this item will catch your eye.  This auction is for highlights from the 1954 Army-Navy game, captured on 16mm film. The 27-20 Navy win is widely considered one of the best games in series history. Navy entered the game with the nation’s top-ranked defense. Army entered the game having won 7 in a row and featuring the country’s top offense. Red Blaik vs. Eddie Erdelatz. Don Holleder vs. George Welsh & Ron Beagle. Navy’s “Team Named Desire” went on to shut out Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl, 21-0. Truly a classic game with some great teams.

There are services that will convert 16mm film to DVD, in case you were wondering.