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BY JIM DAWSON SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 ONE PLAY AWAY – SEATTLE EDGES PATRIOTS 35-30 The Patriots had the ball on Seattle’s 1 yard line after a 12-yard catch by N’Keal Harry. .03 seconds left. Cam Newton tried to run behind fullback Jakob Johnson, but a Seahawk submarined him (Adams?), and Cam was stopped short by LJ Collier. Earlier Seattle had seen Cam score behind FB Johnson’s block, and Cam had passed to Johnson for a 1-yard TD. The Seahawks were probably keying on Johnson as a result. To me this loss has a silver lining for the Pats. Should they meet again, NE knows that they can beat Seattle. When you are down 35-23 with 4:32 left in the game, you shouldn’t be one play away from winning. One play. Of course, it’s good to have Pete Carroll as the coach on the other sideline. After the Pats had scored to make it 35-30 with 2:16 left, Seattle had a 3rd and 1. They tried a long pass to Lockett who was well covered by Jonathan Jones. The Seahawks had at that point 154 yards rushing and Chris Carson had 72 of those. Naw we’ll pass. Thanks Pete. If you look at the stats, you wonder how the Patriots were in this game, never mind one play away from winning. Russell Wilson was 21 of 28. He hit 5 different receivers for TDs: Metcalf for 54 yards against Gilmore. Moore for 38 vs Jason McCourty. In my notes, I wrote ‘Great pass’ or ‘hell of a pass’, including a 16 yarder to Lockett that also beat Jason McCourty. 21 yards to Swain. 18 yards to Carson. 154 yards rushing. The Patriots ran for 67 yards. Cam Newton again led the pack with 11 carries for 47 yds. However Cam also was 30 of 44 passing for 397 yards (to Wilson’s 288). Both passers had 1 INT with Devin McCourty returning it 43 yards for a TD (a deflection off Olsen). The Pats had a lead twice at 7-0 and 14-7, but each time the Seahawks and Wilson came roaring back. Seattle was more versatile with 22 first downs – 10 rushing and 11 passing (1 by penalty). The Pats had 29 first downs, 5 by the run and 22 by pass (2 by penalty). What Cam did with this thin receiving core is a sight to behold. That said, they need to trade for a veteran receiver. Edelman had 8 catches on 11 targets for 179 yards! Harry had 8 catches on 12 targets. And they didn’t have Harry for a while after a helmet to helmet hit by Quandre Diggs put Harry in concussion protocol. Diggs was thrown out. Damiere Byrd had 6 catches on 9 targets. The one Newton INT was a pass slightly off which Dunbar intercepted. Byrd needed to fight for the ball more so that if he doesn’t get it neither does the defender. Burkhead had 6 targets and 4 catches. A key here was the team missing James White who is a dual threat, running and receiving. White’s parents were in a horrible car crash that killed his father and put his mother in critical condition. May his mother survive and return to good health. POINTS AFTER Seattle strong safety Jamal Adams (a gift from the Jets) had a monster game. He blitzed to stop Cam on the two point conversion and also on a 3rd and goal which caused the Pats to settle for a field goal. He had 6 tackles and 4 assists (10) and had the only sack. The Pats were led by John Simon 5/3 (8) and Jonathan Jones 7/0 (7). Calhoun had a sack. Winovich and Rivers (who may have gotten hurt) split the other sack. The team had 8 QB hits, but time and again Wilson either ran or passed his team to a 1st down. There was a strange play where Cam Newton scored on a run and the refs totally missed it. Then Bill Belichick threw a challenge beanbag and the refs missed that too! So Newton calmly ran the ball in for a TD on the next play. Devin McCourty was miked for the game. When he returned his INT for a TD, he looked at the camera and said “28 We love you.” James White wears #28. Rookie DB Kyle Dugger got into the game and was in the line of vision of Wilson for a throw to the receiver who caught it. Had Dugger raised his arms, he might had deflected or intercepted the ball. BULLETS • R.I.P Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who after a long, courageous fight against cancer succumbed to complications from pancreatic cancer at age 87. Ginsburg is an icon to many for her life’s work and her tenure on the Supreme Court. She was a champion of women’s rights and gender equality. She graduated at the top of her Columbia Law School class but no law firm would hire her. That didn’t stop her. She was a giant at 5’1”. R.I.P. RBG. (Source - Wikipedia) • The Celtics overcame a locker room squabble and Miami’s zone to win Game #3 and now sit at 1-2 with the next game not until Wednesday. The other Final has to catch up. • The Atlanta Falcons need a new coach. Yesterday they blew a big lead to Dallas in the 4th quarter allowing the Cowboys to score two TDs and then a winning FG after the Falcons botched the onside kick. Falcons players failed to jump on the Zuerlein onsider which had not gone 10 yards until it had gone 10 yards and then the Cowboys recovered. • The San Francisco 49ers won a Pyrrhic victory yesterday as they thrashed the Jets 31-13. The 49ers had injuries to QB Jimmy Garoppolo (high ankle sprain), RB Raheem Mostert (knee), DE Nick Bosa (torn ACL?) and DL Solomon Thomas (torn ACL?). The Niners complained about the turf at the Jets Met Life Stadium. (per NY Post). • Tom Brady still doesn’t look comfortable to me in his new setting in Tampa Bay. He was 23 of 35 with an interception (a high throw over Gronk’s head). He also threw some passes into the ground in front of his receivers. SPOTLIGHT ON TALENT – PETER BORTOLOTTI Some of you may know Peter Bortolotti as a Marketing Professor at Johnson & Wales for 19 years (he just retired). Others may know Peter as the lead guitarist and singer in the rock band Tanya McIntyre and The Professors. Here is a different side. Peter went to U. Conn on a track scholarship. After graduation, he headed to Penn State to train with two former PSU grads including high school teammate Charlie Maguire and Greg Fredericks. Peter ran the 3000m Steeplechase. He was good enough to go to the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon in 1976. Fredericks made the 1980 Olympics team but that team never went to Moscow. Peter also got his Teaching Certificate (English) at PSU and did some MBA work there. Last Friday at the Hot Club, I mentioned to Peter that I was reading Terry Nau’s book Reluctant Soldier...Proud Veteran about his experiences serving in Vietnam with the US Army. Peter immediately recognized Terry’s name and knew that he had written sports for a Pennsylvania newspaper. He asked me to contact Terry. Terry Nau is the esteemed ex-sports editor of the Pawtucket Times. When I contacted him, he indeed remembered Peter. Terry said he was the sports editor for the Pennsylvania Mirror at the time that Peter was at Penn State. Every year a fraternity would hold a charity fundraiser called the Phi Psi 500. According to Terry, the race was run through the streets and back alleys of State College’s bar district. Calder Alley, Beaver Avenue. Bars included the Rathskeller and Phyrst. It was a mile race and the runners had to stop along the route at 6 bars, chug one beer in each bar and then continue running. Peter said he ran the ‘mile’ in 5:13, with beers included. Pete said the Phi Psi 500 race motto was ‘Chugging for Charity’. In an email, Terry had this to say: “The Phi Psi was a fun race that began in the mid-1970s. People who could run and drink beer were good at it and Peter was the best. He beat a few serious runners along the way and set a course record, too. You should ask him what it was like to chug six beers and run a mile at the same time. Some of the smarter runners learned to just run into the bar, throw the beer into their face, and take off...Glad you are honoring Pete in the Zine. He is still a legend back in State College.” EMAIL Hey Jim…..it’s great to see football back, but it is weird to be rooting for a team led by Cam Newton. Who’d have predicted that? For this week’s quiz I’m going with Toots Hibbert of the Maytals. I’m not sure if he’s credited with naming the genre of Reggae but he certainly fits the time frame. I was at the Providence Civic Center in 75 or 76 when Toots and the Maytals were the opening act for The Who. They opened up with Country Roads by John Denver and were promptly booed off the stage. I guess RI wasn’t ready for a Reggae pioneer that night! Keep up the great work! Tom Robinson Yes Tom, the answer is Toots Hibbert of the Maytals. You are not only the first to get the answer but the first to respond to the trivia question. Your batting average is on the rise. Fortunate to see Toots a few times. He died last week at age 77 and it might have been from COVID-19. Thanks also for the kind words. - Z Frederick Hibbert. According to Meg Griffith (Sirius Radio/ Deep Tracks) Toots died of complications from Covid 19. Ken Forestal Right you are Ken. It's Frederick 'Toots' Hibbert. He coined the term reggae in one of his songs. Sad that Toots died of COVID-19. He and another legend, John Prine, were felled by that disease. - Z Trivia: "Toots" Hibbert seems to fit those credentials that you listed. One of the founding fathers of the reggae sounds coming from the sunny confines of Jamaica way. He was loved by Keith Richards and Otis Redding. The cult classic film "The Harder They Come" played at the Orson Welles Theatre in Harvard Square many a Saturday night for years during the early 70s when the air was filled with fun and the unmistakable scent of ganga during the film. "Pass it on, please" was the request of the night. Cough, cough...good shit man, thank you. Only saw it about 7 times with other nefarious hipsters of the night. Pretty rough and primitive cinematography, but it fit the Trenchtown backdrop of Kingston perfectly. Bill LaPlante Bill, yes the trivia answer is Fred 'Toots' Hibbert. Saw The Harder They Come a few times. Toots is in it and they play Sweet and Dandy and Pressure Drop in the movie. Some people think that the Jimmy Cliff character is based on Toots. - Z Jim, good Sportzine. I hope Cam Newton only runs the ball when necessary....we all know what can happen to run happy QBs (You don't have to refuse to go down Cam, unless it's the last yard for a first down!), but that ability of his will keep opposing defenses honest. If the Celtics play their hard-nosed defense against the Heat and contest their three point shooters...they'll advance to the Finals. The Celts have played better 'D' in the playoffs.  And rebounds, rebounds, rebounds. Which reminds me of an article in the Globe (I believe) which pointed to how Pat Riley and Danny Ainge have never liked each other.  Riley once said to his playoff team..."No rebounds, no rings!". My answer to the quiz this week is Toots Hibbert of Toots and the Maytals. The movie, which we saw together (at the Palace in Providence?) and was part of a double feature, was "The Harder They Come" in which 2 of Toots' songs were part of the killer soundtrack. Do I get any bonus points for remembering the first feature film that night....the obscure...."Smile Orange"? We, of course, saw Toots and The Maytals together at the last version of Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel. Slainte, Brad Yes Brad, it’s Toots Hibbert and the movie was The Harder They Come. I did not remember that movie Smile Orange. Toots always put on a great show. - Z  Jim: Back in '85, I worked a gig at Lupo's, with EmmyLou Harris playing. It was her 40th birthday. After the show, I was serving b'day cake & showed her a picture of our then, less than 1 year old son. She liked it and signed a balloon for him : " To Adam - Sweet dreams, EmmyLou Harris." I still have the balloon, which is now the size of my thumb! And may I say, she was as sweet as the icing on her cake! Tom Wallis Great story Tom. I have seen Emmylou a bunch of times including once at Tanglewood. I liked her so much I thought Willie Nelson was opening for her that night until I heard the strains of the first song. - Z What is your guesstemit on how many Pat fans were rooting against Bucs yesterday? Ken Forestal Hi Ken, good question. Cara is rooting for Tom Brady. Monica and Walt are not. I'm not rooting for him, just curious as to how he will do. He did not look good yesterday. Besides the two INTs, he threw 2 balls to the sidelines that were the worst I've ever seen him throw. No one could have caught them, not even Tacko Fall. Sportzine is also available at jimdawsonsports.com thanks to Buffalo Steve Lenz That Tampa Bay OL seemed to wilt as the game went on. My feeling is that Brady made a serious mistake leaving the Patriots. History will reveal if he was forced out or just stubborn about a 2 year contract. Going to a different team where you don't know the players is a huge disadvantage. He had a comfort factor with the Pats,knowing the offensive players especially the receivers and OL. Doubt that Gronk is going to help him much. I predict Gronk gets hurt early this 'season'. Go Pats! - Z Well, it's down to Dallas vs. Tampa Bay for Lord Stanley's prized silver Cup. I'll be rooting for the Lightning to take it in six games; I'm just not a fan of the Stars. I have always appreciated the play of Radulov for his savvy with the puck up the boards and behind the net. Jamie Benn is also a factor as a leader and just being in the right position on both ends of the ice. Pavelski? Have never liked him as he is a sneaky little shit who throws a slash here and there that doesn't get called enough. He reminds me of Chris Draper who used to play for Detroit during their many wars with the Avalanche.  I'll give them both their due being good teammates to their club and help in winning games, but there is something about them being a little too cagey for a tip of my cap. Vasilevskiy might just be the difference in the series over Bishop between the pipes. Will just see where it all leads in the next ten days or so; it'll be a good diversion from the rest of the babble surrounding the election. Bill LaPlante Hi Bill, should be a fun Stanley Cup series. Paul and I also like Tampa Bay. Have seen some 3rd periods of the games though not the 2 OT clincher by the Lightning. I saw the Dallas win when Khudobin (ex-Bruins goalie) stopped 38 of 40 shots. Not sure if it's he or Bishop in goal for Dallas. - Z It will be a good series to watch. I’m with you, Bill, on hopes that the Lightning take it. I worry about all the overtime periods they have put in. Dallas will be rested while Tampa has played at least 3 extra GAMES to get to Lord Stanley’s cup. Hope they have the legs. Paul Beaudette Jim, Well, the Celts have dug themselves a hole, I guess. I was hopeful that their defense, which had improved during the 'bubble playoffs', would be stout, but in these first two games vs Miami it has been sporadic. Key shots by Dragic and Butler at the end of the game were killers....and I believe Robinson shot 50% from 3 pt range during the game. The Celtics' 3rd quarter was atrocious. Brad Stevens said the zone D that the Heat has been using has given the Celtics trouble. I would say. Maybe, the Celts can bounce back on Saturday (like the Raptors did in the previous series Game 3) and extend this to a full 7 game series. They better do so or Pat Riley will be wearing a big grin that Danny Ainge would cringe at seeing. Brad Dawson THE HOT CLUB Well, we resumed the Name your 10 Favorite Albums. Originally I said rock albums. However Kristin didn’t like my expansive definition of ‘rock’. Said she was peacefully protesting by not offering any more of her choices. So we’ll change it to favorite albums. I did preface the session by stating that you couldn’t name a Greatest Hits album. Mark Allio’s next 2 picks were Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and The Band’s The Band album. Peter Bortolotti opted for The Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers and The Beatles’ White Album. My choices were Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run and Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms. Dr. John also liked Springsteen’s Born to Run. His second choice was The Doobie Brothers’ The Captain and Me. Capt. Jack liked Billy Ocean’s Suddenly and Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. Big John Wayland was absent when we started this, so he was allowed to make 4 picks. He came up with 2: Led Zeppelin’s Led Zeppelin II and The Beatles’ White Album. We were talking about the ProJo and local news. Dr. John said that local news is ‘a little blood, a little dirt and a little peak under the skirt.’ Kristin said that the best part of fighting with your companion is ‘make up sex’. ANSWER TO LAST ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION Last time I asked you about a pioneer who performed music for 6 decades. He’s credited with giving a music genre it’s name. He was in a groundbreaking movie and two of his band’s songs were on the soundtrack. A couple of you got it: Frederick ‘Toots’ Hibbert of the Maytals. Tom Robinson, Ken Forestal, Bill LaPlante, my brother Brad and Peter Bortolotti at the Hot Club all had the correct answer. Toots’ 1968 song Do the Reggay is widely credited with giving the genre it’s name. Hibbert was a multi-instrumentalist who could play every instrument in his band. Sadly Toots died of COVID-19 on 9/11/20. R.I.P. Toots. Thanks for the great music. (Source – Wikipedia). THIS ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION This bluesman made his debut at the Newport Folk Festival. Many artists have covered his songs. He’s in the Blues and Rock HOFs. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Name?