Results tagged “davidakers”

Things got hot in LA this weekend and it looks like we may have a real series on our hands. A few head-seeking fastballs, a little bench-clearing, and a whole lot of jawing just turned this NLCS into a tense and competitive slugfest. Game 4 is tonight. Joe Blanton is winless in Chavez Ravine this season. Derek Lowe is pitching on 3-days rest. Gear up, Philly, this could get good as the Phils try to take control in a 3-1 series, or allow the Dodgers to knot it up at 2-2.

Silently, the audience waited, rapt with the anticipation of a season teetering in the balance. For one moment, 70,000 pairs of eyes stared, borderline maniacally, on a spot in the ground. The 39-yard line. Giants leading 16-13. The weather conditions screamed like a leviathan, suggesting the sheer implausibility of what was about to take place. 57 yards? The wind. The rain. The mud. All seeming to offer a stern “Thou shalt not pass.” Still, there David Akers stood, a thunderball of intensity and defiance. As he hunched over the holder, his icy breath distributed itself upon the environs of a stoic Lincoln Financial Field. Sav Rocca looked up for one final look, an assurance that the diminutive place kicker was ready. But Akers' eyes said it all: “This is my time.”

The Philly Auto Show is in town this weekend! We're reasonably certain none of the cars there will be able to transform into giant robots, but it will still be pretty cool. If you're interested in previewing the show, and you've got some extra cash lying around, festivities can start for you tonight at the Black Tie Tailgate Preview Gala. There'll be food, drink, and entertainment, and best of all, all proceeds will go to the Auto Dealers CARing for Kids Foundation and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Though I expected the Eagles to win, all the imbibed Sam Adams Winter Brews, along with the frenzied conversation shared with my relatives, made the game play out like a dream, as they ran away with the game in the second half. Literally. The Eagles 204 yds rushing was three more than the Cowboys total offensive output. They ended the day with 426 yds of total offensive. But what was most impressive was how they were able to control the clock during long sustained drives: they ended the game with 37:06 minutes of possession compared to 22:54 for the Cowboys. On their opening drive Garcia overcame the momentary loss of L.J. Smith (Smith would return in the 3rd with a 65yd completion that helped set up a field goal) by connecting with his backup, Matt Scobel, for a 25 yard touchdown pass after a 13 play 89 yard drive that ate up seven minutes and twelve seconds from the clock. After exchanging possession via a fumble on the ensuing kickoff followed by a Jeff Garcia interception (Madden proved once again that he doesn't know what he's talking about as he said: "This is what Garcia does a lot of," as Garcia has thrown only two INTs in five games in addition to recently have a stint where he threw the most passes of his career without an INT), the Eagles defense shutdown the Cowboys on the goalline in dramatic fashion. Garcia took them right back down the field with another 89-yard drive (12-yards, 7:30) that resulted in a David Akers field goal to put the Birds up by 10.

There was nothing else. A blanket of slate clouds shrouded the sun and blue sky. The misty fog which enveloped Lincoln Financial Field veiled most of the already irrelevant outside world. For those fans like myself sitting in the lower levels, not even the parking lot or other newly constructed sporting venues were visible. There was just this. No worrying about grocery shopping; no fantasizing of love interests; no wallowing in thoughts of returning to work the following morning. None of that mattered to those who had convened upon the stone sanctuary at 3501 South Broad Street. It would be sacrilegious for disciples of the Eagles to divert even an ounce of energy away from the game.

And a hello back to you, news desk. The sports department, not currently being possessed of any other employment, was sleeping in today. In fact, we were just doing the same thing we thought Todd Pinkston might be doing, given that he and Koy Detmer are no longer employed by the Eagles.

David Akers sat crying on the sidelines after yesterday's afternoon game against the Oakland Raiders. He stood crying on the field, as well. And he walked on the sidelines, crying. There was a lot of crying going on, basically. But the good kind. Well, the good, torn hamstring kind.

Quite frankly, Stephen A. Smith has his finger dug into the neck of this fine city (we think that the neck is located somewhere in Northeast Philly), taking its pulse and converting into prose that reminds us of rainbows. And so, what Stephen A. says is gospel around these parts. Just look at Sunday, for instance: in the Inquirer, Smith took the Eagles to task for their poor offense and the Eagles responded with a poor offensive showing yesterday afternoon, beating the 49ers by a mere 39 points.

It was inside-out last night in Philadelphia as the Phillies stepped up big in an important game while the Eagles shrivelled up and fumbled their way to a 14-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons last night. The Eagles were slow out of the gate, allowing the Falcons to ring up 14 quick points. This might have been due to the Eagles first blunder of the evening, which happened before kickoff. Jeremiah Trotter got into a shoving match with Falcons cornerback Kevin Mathis during team warmups. The two players were ejected from the game for throwing punches, even though Trotter didn't actually throw a punch. Still, he retaliated to Mathis' taunts and was thrown from the game, taking away a key component of the Eagles' defense.