Week 2 Recap

It is the eve of a festival which tends to mess with the body. Eating, drinking, sleeping on a spin cycle of doom for the physique and psyche– all in the name of good times and holiness. Who am I to question thousands of years of tradition, but lest we forget 30 years of Jewball tradition. Good times and holiness on the field. And so to combat the lethargy and gluttony that creeps ever closer, we have instituted the Pitom Bowl. A post 3 Day Yom Tov football game to not only get the body and brain activated again in preparation for the work that will carry us into spring, but hopefully also to give us pause at the kiddushes, meals and simchas beises and ask ourselves the question….is this indulgence worth it? Cuz I got on the field obligations as soon as this is over and I don’t want to be a step slow, I don’t want to be weak, I don’t want to be winded, I don’t want to be tired. All that said…. Sherrif….you bringing the smokes Tuesday night??
But let us travel back to a different place and time. One that feels ancient, almost, as it predates the high holies that have come and gone – as they often do – with much sound and fury, but somehow in a blink. I speak of an alternate dimension known as Week 2. Games thrown together at the last minute. Regular QBs out. Guest QBs in. Distant memories of games played at Hewlett. Was that this season or two seasons ago? Having to leave. BK and Steve-O running around checking fields like it’s 2010. A game on the grass at LHS like it’s 2013. What I always loved about Jewball and what I will always love about Jewball is that we always find a way. Like Dr. Ian Malcolm said about nature. And as nice as it is to have a permit. As spoiled and as privileged (good seeing you today, Mo) as we’ve become – I relish a chance to get booted from a field, which sends us scrambling and regrouping and figuring sh*t out and building a field somewhere else – GRASS! OUR ROOTS! – a field we have history with – a land that knows our cleat steps, our voices, our spirits – and getting the game going despite the obstacle. My proudest weeks as a Jewballer were when we had about ten excuses not to play, and we made it work. I will never forget the one week we built a small diagonal field at some school on Franklin in Woodmere – we walked from WMS after getting tossed mid-game (maybe even late-mid-game), and we hopped the fence and some people left but some stayed….and we played maybe 5 on 5 on this weird patch of grass, trespassing, for like 40 minutes. Made no sense to do it, but it proved to me that our will to Jewball is that great force of nature that Jeff Goldblum was talking about. So Week 2 – all this time later – feels at the same time eminently forgettable and memorable. The details of the games fade, but what the games represent are eternal.
The early games were played at the newly minted turf at Hewlett. Was definitely nice to be back. It was our home for a few epic seasons. Felt welcoming and secure. Like we were always meant to return. We split the field as we always had, but not with the Old Guys. Dan Faust was nowhere to be found. Instead, we took up both sides with nary an old guy, band geek, or soccer player in sight. We just waltzed right in like we owned the place. And speaking of owning the place, let’s talk about Key QBing against Snow in Game 1. Former MVP v. Future MVP. With his dad beaming from the sidelines, Key took his team on a ride, running and gunning, and leading them to a pretty breezy 5-2 victory. All hail the immortal warrior, Dov Snow, for stepping into the void and QBing for us when we needed him to, but the MVP has lost a step while Key is gaining on all the QBs in Jewball at a rapid pace (Does Feit know Key is on The Reapers?). What impressed me most about Key in this game was his accurate throws on the run. He got out of the pocket and adeptly threatened to take off, but did so with eyes up field….and more often than not, he cocked his arm back while in motion and slung it to a receiver – like his father in an ass – with surgical precision. Did he throw 3 picks? Yes. But did Snow throw 4? Also, yes. And you can’t win games like that. 4 picks thrown by Snow – one a walk-in P6 by BZ from the 5, another a full field P6 sprint by Key ripping the ball from Jordan’s hands – was too much to overcome. Key throws 3 TDs – one each to Prime, Sherrif, and Vegh…and that was more than enough. Key beats Snow 5-2 and gets his first Jewball of many. Looking forward to having someone in the League that can bring honor back to the Rahmani name.
I don’t know if it was the better game, but the closer game was played on the other side of the field. Zinn v. Yaron. And I guess the theme of the day was…if you throw 4 picks, you’re gonna lose. And Zinn threw less than 4 picks (like Key, he threw 3). Yaron did not. Yaron struggled again in this early season, throwing deep balls that either shouldn’t be thrown or are just underthrown. It’s still Week 2 in the recap world, but this is being written post League Week 1 and the trend did continue there. Alas, it’s a rocky, rollercoaster season. The early going is the time to clean things up. From the box score, it looks like having Zinn as QB obviated one of the basic requirements of any QB with Zinn on their team -that would be…getting the ball to Zinn. In this instance, he had it on hike. And so he scores 3 rushing TDs. Makes sense. He’s fast and elusive. Once he is in the open field, it is all but over (shout out to Storm with a great flag grab last Sunday defying the premise I just proffered – to be recapped). He also threw one to Irv (though we cannot confirm whether he was just throwing the ball at Irv) to account for his only thrown TD of the day. Sheer numbers give Zinn the Jewball. He put the team on his back and locked in the W.
About this time, some kids started kicking soccer balls on the field. We attempted to bully them to get off. Then their coaches showed up. Then their parents started showing up. Never a good sign. So the signal was shot into the sky (or someone posted on the chat) that a field was needed. BK checked Woodmere. Steve-O checked LHS. Everyone just moved on. No complaints. No whining. No hanging of heads. Just….let’s get them game in. Beautiful. I handed the gear to Sting and Tommy. They headed to the field. Kut reported that the grass was not only open, but there was a painted perimeter with painted yard markers. Another gift from the Jewball gods. Guys rolled up and the game was underway only about 15 minutes late. It was Ernie v. Dachs and I got to watch a nice amount of it. Filmed a bit, which I try to convince myself releases me from the obligation of recapping. But that’s a lazy voice. Let it not be missed that this was – after many teases and almost in the past – the regular season Jewball debut of Samet. He is officially in the Chronicles and record books. He got there late, but he showed up and…we all knew it – kid can ball. Ernie looked pretty good at QB. As he always tells me….if he got reps…he could regain much of the old magic. After watching him Week 2, I believe it. He had some gorgeous completions that only a real QB could make. It wasn’t like just throws. He was passing the ball in windows like a real QB. One pass to Samet on a cross was a stunner. For much of the game he went punch for punch with Dachs. But Dachs is putting up some crazy numbers this season. Again, with my knowledge of Week 3 already, I can cheat and tell you he’s thrown 10 TDs and only 2 picks. He threw 5 of those TDs in Week 2. Getting it done with the rookies. 2 to Schiffer. 2 to Tommy. Again, can check out the videos for the full experience, but these were bullets into tight windows – and his receivers did not let him down. It was a relatively mistake free game. Both teams played well, just Dachs had more firepower than Ernie. Dachs gets the W 6-4 and the Jewball. Hopefully see some of you Sunday morning and even more of you Tuesday night. And of course…Let’s Go Subway Series!!!

On a bright sunny late September day in the year 2024 – approximately 30 years after the first Jewball game was played in Queens, NY, on grass without a permit – Jewball was played in Lawrence, Long Island, on turf with a permit. The game has come a long way. It was played without the presence of anyone who had participated in the first Jewball game, though Rabin was present and he had played with those Jewball pioneers like Alan Milchman, the Oracle. And Jordan was there who played with Rabin. And Mighty was there who played with Jordan. And Kut was there who played with Mighty. And Daveo was there who played with Kut. And Yaron was there who played with Daveo. And Prime was there who played with Yaron. And Pray was there who played with Prime. And Irv was there who played with Pray. And Dachs was there who played with Irv. And Ice Man was there who played with Dachs. And Dietsch was there who now played with Ice Man. And now you see what this is and how it works and even more importantly – why it works. I have been working on these Jewball Chronicles for over 20 years. I could not tell you why I started or why I kept it up, but it’s our great fortune that they still exist and are kept and preserved by Yaron and Steveo. Because you look back and see our humble beginnings, but you also can see the regal pride embedded in our DNA. We have not mutated over the year into a monster. We have evolved into one. The monster that is Jewball was tucked into our genetic code from the very first game. It was a seed planted deep within by the guys who went out there and set up the cones and played in the cold under the shadow of Terrace on the Park. It just took nurturing. Nurturing by way of passion and commitment and love and blood and sweat and tears and heart and sacrifice. Jewball has never been short on nurturers of that sort. In fact, it has always been a magnet for them. It has always been overflowing with them. This is the only rational explanation for the Chronicles and all the characters that populate them. Characters that I met up with on Sunday mornings for over two decades and went to work with. The work of football. The work of brotherhood. The work of being present and determined and goal oriented. These characters dance through my head now as I write this and although some inactive/retired players are on this chat, I lament those that aren’t still playing. Because it really pains me that you guys didn’t play with Katzenstein, and Doggy, and Marino, and Ike, and Uri – that Prime didn’t sh*t talk with Joey. That outside of Salem, none of our current crop of menaces at line battled B-sh in his claws-out prime. And I mourn for our faded Vets as well. Imagine JK throwing bombs to Zinn. No Jewball QB has ever thrown farther and so accurate. He would have been so happy. Instead, he was stuck playing 4 on 4s as official QB with dudes who couldn’t handle his heat. Imagine Rook running Routes for Marino. Two smooth studly Jewballers decked out in crisp Dolphins gear lighting up the Jewball stage with their incandescent star power. This is what pains me. Not that it is coming to an end. Not that I write a recap now for Week 1 perhaps for the last time. But that I don’t have the power or mystical prowess to merge it all. To grab the four corners of the Jewball tapestry and pull them together into an overstuffed bindle, combining everything, all of it – the grass, the sky, the mud, the laughs, the aches, the rubber pellets that fill my socks, the feel of the football burying itself into my grip, the knowledge that there is nothing between you and endzone, that the ball will not be dropped, but carried and maybe even scored – into one compact amalgamation of beauty and greatness, and carry it off with me.
If not for the Recaps, I wouldn’t remember any Opening Day – maybe even any game. But this one may stand out as I have a vested interest in holding on to the moments of this season. I would have to guess I had the first stat of the season. Or at least I shared it with Pray. Opening play, covering Mike, Pray slings one over the middle about 25 yards deep, and Jordan with the pick, sliding to the ground. Turnover gives the ball to Yaron, who has the ultimate Jewball weapon in his arsenal – one Roy Inavder Zinn. He of the height, speed, and hands the likes of which Jewball has never seen. What if I told you he and Yaron would score zero TDs together in this game? Although Zinn would make an incredible catch late in the game over Storm and Mighty that would elicit a “Who does that?” from Dax, the phenom would go scoreless on the day. Regardless, it was a punch for punch game. Yaron to Jordan twice for scores and once to Tomaz. Pray picked up right where left off – finding ways to move the chains and frustrate defenses. Whenever his squad needed a big play, it just seemed to happen. The first of which was a desperation heave to the Kid on a 3rd and long. Jordan was on the coverage and, instead of getting a second pick on the day, tipped the ball, which ended up being bobbled by Kid once, twice, and finally hauled in on the 3rd try. The drive ended up in a score to Mighty. With the game tied late, and a 4th and goal from the 20, Pray once again found some magic reminiscent of the famous Stat Count It game, with Storm cutting hard to the endzone and turning at the goal line. Pray uncorks a bullet that takes a B line for Storm. Jordan is there. Zinn is there. 6 hands converge on the ball, but only two POSESS the ball. That would be the clamps of one Johnny Storm. His second score of the day. And with that the tie is broken. Yaron has a final chance to tie, but throws a pick to Pray and with that, Yaron drops the season opener (4-3). Jewball to Pray for the 3 TDs throw, pick, and rushing TD.
Across the field, the last of our active Dachses was taking on a reconstructed Gronk, coming off his surgery and rehab of last season. Let’s just take a moment, rise to our fee, and applaud. Hats off. Tap the heart. Proud to share a field with you, Gronk. I couldn’t’ watch the game as I was playing in a different game – and as I do not have Logan’s ability to break down games I didn’t see – I cannot really say much. But the stats tell a story. Gronk wasn’t sharp. He threw 3 picks. Rust needed to come off it seems. Threw a TD to Legs and a TD to Prime, but 2 scores was all his squad could muster. Meanwhile, Dachs was on fire. And so was some guy named Landy. Bos score says the undrafted rookie scored 3 TDs. A Mantis-like performance. But I’m going to hand the Jewball to Dachs for 4 TDs thrown, 1 rushed, and 2 picks.
I caught a glimpse of the late game, which was Rabin v. Perla. I saw Rabin throw as a professional a TD pass as you will see in Jewball to Zinn. The ball thrown true and tight and spiraled and before his receiver finished his route…so when Zinn turned in the front of the endzone, the ball was in his sight line and just gliding toward him from the perfect angle. I also saw Rabin try this a few more times with far less grace and success. I witnessed Kut score an incredible TD, running about 87 yards past all sorts of defenders who could not either pull his flag or catch up to him. Kut has that sneaky ball carrying speed. Perla wins 3-2, scoring with Irv, Kut, BK. Not sure who gets a Jewball for this one, but since Kut had a TD and sack….and I saw his heroics….let’s say him.

I wouldn’t say anything changed in me over the past 23 years as I relate to this game we call Jewball. I loved it the first day I showed up (uninvited – heard about it from a friend – and didn’t get into the game – just watched jealously from the sidelines) and I love it today. Did I know at that time that it would one day encompass half my life (by the end of this season it will officially be the majority of my life)? Of course not. I loved it, and would have liked to think I could do it forever. But you need a lot of mazal in this world. Things need to break right. Things need to not break. Or rip. Or pop. Or strain. BH I had that mazal. I played some in the 2001 season. And I showed up for Opening Day in 2002, my first full season. And then I showed up for Opening Day in 2003. By 2004, I was organizing Opening Day. By 2005 I had migrated the game from Queens to the 5Ts. And here we still are – bigger and badder than ever – almost two decades later.
So, I don’t think I’ve changed – but because Jewball has changed so much and grown so much, my Opening Day message has evolved. When its original intention was to wake up people from their summer malaise and convince them to get out and play football again – that isn’t necessary now. We are in our Enlightenment Era and Jewball has become a full on way of life. Football season ends but Jewball season is a constant. So….no need to rally the troops. I will however say…..Let’s Fucking Go. Bring it Sunday. Every damn down like u mean it.
One thing that is always needed is to talk to the Rookies/a chazara on what we are doing here. Jewball is a football league, but we like to consider it a true brotherhood where we value quality football above all, but quality people a very near second. You won’t survive here if you aren’t a Jewball type. You will either go fleeing in the opposite direction, or we will spit you out. This is the kind of thing you will experience as opposed to me explaining it. Explaining the Jewball ethos is like explaining a joke. It’s a waste of time and energy. Either you get it (or will get it) or you won’t. I will say this as the truest of Jewball truisims. The more you put in, the more you will get out. I firmly believe you will benefit just by being here. The guys here are so unbelievably awesome and talented that your life should improve incrementally simply due to osmosis. However, there is benefit and there is BENEFIT. And that’s up to you. If you show up, you will see rewards you won’t really be able to process in the short term. Again…..not gonna explain. You might ask what does show up mean? And my only answer is….show up as much as you can. Push yourself to show up. Push yourself to be a part of it. Some of it. All of it. In both is our mantra and it means in everything. As much as Jewball offers…..be greedy and partake. I say this not because we need it. Those days are over. BH we are in a very good place and on solid ground. I say this because life is an ocean of bitchery and Jewball is an island. Some of you got injured….so u may think….I’ll keep my head down until I play on the field and prove myself. Absolute nonsense. Prove yourself now! Show up now. Whether on the chat or at events or to the games. You will get out what you put in. Everyone here will attest. With that, I welcome you all to this 2024-2025 Jewball season. My 23rd full. Rabin’s like…..28th. I mention the season count because Jewball is proud of its history. If you haven’t seen our website….check it out. www.jewballsports.com. I said before I can’t explain the ethos….but exploring the site gives you a sense. I leave you with this message: Write your story. Care about the tapestry we are weaving. Care that you will be woven onto it. We are out here risking real shit. It’s worth it. Make it worth it.

My hope is that this season remains an outlier. Not because it was bad in any way. It wasn’t. This final recap will usher you through a strange, confounding, stirring, sometimes jarring, but ultimately redemptive Jewball 2023-2024 campaign. It’s a season that is hard to describe. It was like a Jewball delicacy comprised of all the usual ingredients, but the result when served had an unfamiliar taste. It was a flavor we had not experienced in the modern era. Not sour at all. But not entirely sweet. Too easy to call it salty. So I’ll just say it was different. And we all know why. Early on in the season, I wrote:
A lot of voices out there might have us question the integrity of our name. Without minimizing how difficult it is and has been to be a member of other tribes and backgrounds, it’s not easy right now to be a Jew. I guess then – since we are all one under this banner – it’s not easy right now to be a Jewballer. I have opinions and thoughts and philosophies about what is going and where it might go, but I’m smart enough to know to keep them to myself and to not listen to those of others. Let’s just stay strong. Stay together. Get through this abysmal era one game at a time.
All these months later, not much has changed. It’s still a hard time to be a Jewballer. And I really don’t want to go too far down that rabbit hole. In a way, this isn’t the place – even though in our final recap, liberties are taken. My problem is that how can I ignore it? A dark cloud hung over our season courtesy of Taylor Swift. It pains me that when Storm was doing his promo for the Patriots and he said next time he’s gonna shout out Jewball, my first thought was….best not to do that now. Our name has been tarnished and degraded. It’s an undeniable fact that we cannot rationalize our way around. In the meantime, we live on, we ball on, but it’s the stuff of tragedy. On this erev Pesach, as I write just a few blocks from where I watched the draft, the words and message of V’hi Sh’amda echo in my head and lead to where I wanted to go anyway. And that is to talk about our persistence.
“And this is what kept our fathers and what keeps us surviving. For, not only one arose and tried to destroy us, rather in every generation they try to destroy us, and God saves us from their hands.”
Or, as the Jewball Haggadah might have it:
And this is what kept the Vets and what keeps us on the field. For, not only have injuries, apathy, excuses, chumash plays, and brisses tried to destroy us, rather in every generation they try to destroy us, and our demented persistence saves us from their hands.
It’s a cheap literary and oratory device to quote the dictionary, but I’m going for it in this case:
To Persist: To go on resolutely or stubbornly in spite of opposition or warning. To continue to exist especially past a usual, expected, or normal time.
Well, damn. If that doesn’t just sum up Jewball as well as the people it was named after. But before we dig in on the nature of our persistence and perhaps even the basis for it, we need to contrast that with the comeback. Lest ye accuse this final recap of plagiarizing from its immediate predecessor. Simply put, a Comeback – as we discussed last year – involves the combining of a returner and a returnee – plus faith. One party separates (for internal or external reasons) from the other, and, with each side harnessing the unquantifiable force of faith, they reunite or reconnect. While persistence may factor in, it isn’t a necessary ingredient. It’s no coincidence that we argue each year about CPOY and who is worthy of it. And we all become Talmudic scholars, differentiating and distinguishing. That’s not really a comeback. He was injured. He was away. But, isn’t that Most Improved (like Legs 😜)? We struggle to define exactly what a Comeback is. I think this tension represents our inability to figure the difference between a comeback candidate and someone who has shown exceptional persistence.
I call the following storyline from this past season underrated only because it’s too massive to fathom or appreciate to the proper extent. That is when Rabin surprised us at the Turkey Bowl with a visit from the Oracle. It happened also to be the day Dom came down to set up and ref. Which – if you recall – was a few days after we rallied a bit to help Dom out with Thanksgiving expenses. We came down, we played football, we had a good time, Dom had a good time, we had photo ops with the Oracle, we appreciated, and we moved on. But it’s now a time for reflection. So let’s reflect.
I think these three separate coinciding events represent the transcendent state of Jewball. We will talk about on the field heroics soon enough, but Jewball has become – for better or….nah, just for better – as much about on the field as off. That is not to say we have neglected our football. Jewball will ALWAYS be a quality football first enterprise. However, in the age of the Enlightenment, we have developed the perfect equilibrium between quality football and quality living – quality existence. So, Dom reffing, our sensitivity to our Jewball family, and our reverence for the traditions and are founders/Vets – while all “off the field” criteria – they encapsulate who we presently are.
The Oracle is persistence personified. Maaseh avos siman labanim. The ordeals of the forefathers become symbols to the generations. We must look no further than the answering machine of legend. Jewball was incubated in the cogs, wheels, and tape of that prehistoric answering machine. When a man takes the time and effort to re-record the greeting each time someone calls in to commit to playing football (on a haphazard grass field that will at most max out at 5-5, and back when winters were cold) so that the game can be organized – so that it can happen despite the odds…that is resolute! That is stubborn! We were born in the flames of that persistence! So is it any surprise that we continue to exist – especially past a usual, expected, or normal time?
The Oracle is our Av. Rabin as well. Who is more persistent than Rabin! Think about what he has endured!! And I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the season the Oracle finally returns to the field – the season where I finally get to meet the man that gave me and us the gift of Jewball – is the season of our Rookie class that produced Ice Man, Sherriff, and Mike, among others. The season where MVP returned. The year when Spira rejoined the family as a full-fledged Jewballer.
Ice Man did not make a comeback. He tried Jewball and it went badly. He came down and quit. We yelled back, “You can’t quit, you’re fired!” And…if we and he had left it at that, we never would have seen this – his revelatory ROY winning season. But there was a persistence about him. There was a willingness to push through as he pushed through Pray in the snow. His persistence has won him awards, a championship, and the admiration, fear, and respect of every Jewballer. What I love about Ice Man is what he shares with our 2022-2023 ROY – and what makes the future so blindingly bright…that is, his mind-bending talent combined with such a prolific comprehension of what we are trying to do here.
Same with the Sherriff. He was out of football. A dude with memories of his glory days playing for Perla and the Brooklyn Beasts. But Perla persisted! And joined us – and continues to persist through whatever slings and arrows we throw at him. And it allowed for his return to TNF. Which brought the Sherriff out of retirement and the Jewballers to meet him. And it was love at first sight. As I say every year when the Rookies join up…..imagine Jewball without the Sherriff?! It doesn’t exist! He drives in from far off lands and lights up the field with his sheer joy for the game (his top tier skills are almost a bonus.) While we are talking about those who persist through distance. How about Stats? How about Dobs coming in from Passaic, NJ! Jewballers! Think about the resolve! Cower in awe of the stubbornness!!!
Who takes more abuse than Mike…..and yet….anyone see him backing down? Anyone see him not calling himself first round material next year. You call it delusional. I call it a grandiose expression of the ultimate and quintessential Jewball quality. I promise you, if you think you know Mike – you do not. He has only begun to persist! The dude has depths that must be excavated and quarried and plumbed like a day in the office for Rabin. I remind everyone of the Rook from just a few years back. Who saw that guy exploding into the leader he is today? Jewball is a beautiful thing because it equally encourages, inspires, engenders and rewards persistence.
Moving on from the Rookies, how about the Vets that showed us the way this year. My God…..Dov Snow…the MVP…I am sitting here with goosebumps trying to fathom the journey this man has taken to return to football – and then take his team to the championship game. Dov, in this year of my rehab, there were so many times just thinking of your resolve and stubbornness – convinced me that giving up was not an option. Jewballers, was he the Dov Snow of old who won championships with Munch and Singer? No, of course not. Is Singer coming back next year? Oh, hells yeah. Was Snow the MVP of this season? He wasn’t. But you know what? He could have been. Because Jewball MVP considers multiple factors and Dov Snow exemplified the factors that make me proudest to be a Jewballer. The dedication to the game. To his fellow Jewballers. And a relentless persistence to push yourself to the brink. To – in a way – risk it all. It’s crazy. I know it sounds crazy. I’m typing the insane words and they read insane. But this is our lot and the length of our days. We have found something here of the mundane world and we have imbued it with a lofty spirit. So…at this point I embrace it like God’s hug of the week.
And speaking of bad Jewball puns….let us take a moment to sing the praises of Spira. Guys, he’s older than me! He hasn’t played football for twenty years. 20 YEARS! Let me give you a modern day example of what happened. It’s as if Pray retired at the end of this season and kept in touch more or less through the guys who remember him from this era as being the man. The guy who welcomed them in. The guy who was revered by all for his good nature and great gridiron prowess. And then, for no clear reason, returned to the game in his late 40s….and still managed to impress everyone – both young and old. Sounds like a fantasy. You wouldn’t believe it if it was the plot of a movie. And yet….Jewball….this is exactly what happened! Spira caught everything in his vicinity back in 2002 and he did the same damn thing in 2024. He ran precise routes then…and now. He overanalyzed everything then…and now. The only difference between the 2002 version and the present is that somehow over the past 20 years at some point Spira decided for no good apparent that he was funny. Spira, thanks for being there when I first got to Jewball and showing me what persistence means. You and Rabin. I am so grateful that both Jewball and Jewball persistence became part of who I am. And that we are still here to prove that it is so much more than a theory, a concept, an esoteric idea – but it’s a reality we can live in – as long as we persist.
When I think of Jewish persistence, and need to internalize it to get me through another day of these miserable days – I think of the diaspora. I think of the exile. I think of my ancestors being banished and chased from their precious homeland of Israel time and again and just wandering, starting anew, and despite whatever persecution or success they achieved in lands not their own, they dreamed of return. They mourned and prayed for return. They yearned for the ability to come home. What our enemies do not know (and surely don’t want to know) is that Jews – all Jews – whether European, Latino, American, Arabian, or wherever and whenever we are and were – we have – for thousands of years – just as we will tonight – sing with passionate hearts – Next Year in Jerusalem! Not Next Year in London, or New York, or the Five Towns or Lakewood. Now, the fact that we now have the ability to return and yet we persist in the exile by choice….that’s a topic for another day – perhaps Zezzy or Joey can drop some knowledge on us. But my point is – and my comfort is – they don’t know us. Jews are vilified for their persistence but their persistence will always defeat the vilification. Always.
Which brings me to the persistence of our Jewballers in exile. Whether it be Zezzy by always making sure to come back for a game every season. Or Effie and Jesus who all the boys know because they never forget their roots. Or Waldo who broke our hearts and his own by leaving for sunnier shores mid-season. But of course we have no brighter star pointing the way out of the galus than Prime. Our very own Exilarch. His yearning to come home is the torch and beacon that both warms and guides – lighting the way back. He dreamed of return – and so he will. As Effie will. Because Jewball persistence – like Jewish persistence – is not bound by the rules of time and space.
Everyone knows by now, at this point in the recap, I distract with one MVP and it’s always a bait and switch. Like if I started talking about Zinn here, you’d know for sure it wasn’t him. My problem this year is…no one is going to fall for anything because it seems like it’s so obviously going to be…
Mighty. Let’s talk about Mighty. This wasn’t Mighty’s MVP season. I think a lot of us wanted it to happen – no one more than me. And it started out looking like an inevitability. Angry Mighty was dead. Happy Mighty rolled up on a pink scooter – an homage to the player Mighty humbly called the only player better than himself in Jewball history. When Zinn was asked about the compliment, he seemed truly touched and responded, “Who’s Mighty?” The Rat was revitalized. Singer was on the sideline for the season to prevent the Rat from getting his stats, and he was getting them in droves. Picks. TDs. Jewballs. The stars were aligning. I started writing the portion of this recap that reminisced about the impact Mighty made on Jewball and how he was, is, and always will be the first superstar of Jewball. There was nothing like him before and because of that there will never be anything like him again. Zez’s impact was compared to Mighty’s. Zinn’s as well. Ice Man, and so on. Jewball was only taken to the spectacular level once and it will forever be Mighty who took us there. Everyone who follows is standing in his tiny paw prints. The numbers remained until his final game, but it was clear that the injuries crept in. Perhaps the anger retuned in small doses. By the time he walked off the field with, according to some shitas, 21 minutes and seventeen seconds on the clock of a playoff game…the MVP conversation was reduced to an inaudible murmur. So be it. But what players like myself know – what younger plays cannot – younger players who can still do everything they want to do on the field and have not lost a step – is what kind of persistence it takes to keep lacing up even as the body deteriorates. Even as the wear can no longer be masked, or massaged, or wrapped. And this is why there will never be another Mighty. Because when he started losing some physical battles, he dug his trenches to fend off the mental wars. Is Mighty a head case? Of course he is. But he has to be. You don’t achieve what he has achieved in Jewball without having ridiculous resolve. Without being the most stubborn. Without persisting beyond the realms of normalcy. So while he is not our 2023-2024 MVP, he is the reigning superstar of Jewball for the past fifteen consecutive seasons. No one else can say that. And I doubt anyone ever will.
Unless Pray does it. There is no drama or suspense here. He won so damn much. He was an excellent, supremely likeable person and player three years ago when he won Jewball MVP – and – somehow – he got better. He became more of a Jewball icon. He overcame an injury like the psycho that he is and – perhaps a bit more limited in his run game – he became an assassin with a football. Cerebral and mercenary, yet inexplicably cool and charismatic. As I messaged him after the monsoon shalom zachor (what up, Feit): Thank you for being the kind of Jewballer that we all want to walk through the pouring rain for. He won a career high 16 games while throwing a career high 60 TDs. He lead his Birds to a preposterously dominant season – winning every game from opening day to the finals. He has forged a bromance with Prime that would make JD and Turk jealous. When he won it 3 years ago it was based on his performance, but also with a sense of optimism and desire that he would live up to the mantle bring thrust on him. Well, he blew past our wildest expectations. In a way – he won his first MVP because of who we hoped he would be. This MVP is won because of who he is – pure and simple. Pray, thank you for being who you are. Don’t let softball chat change you 😊. But, seriously – if Mighty is conscious, hard fought persistence, you are effortless persistence. It is your nature. The love of Jewball is your nature. Competing with us and being a role model for us is your nature. It’s such a blessing when the best advice someone can give you is….be you. Bro, be you…and Jewball will continue to benefit and thrive and feed off your brilliant aura. Three years ago I wrote:
“Pray, it is with both awe and gratitude that I present to you – by the powers invested in me as Recap writer – the Jewball 2020-2021 Season MVP. I see many more of these in your future, with God’s help. Amen.
Today I write:
Pray, it is with both awe and gratitude that I present to you – by the powers invested in me as Recap writer – the Jewball 2023-2024 Season MVP. I see many more of these in your future, with God’s help. Amen.
One last factor in this disjointed season was my own absence from the field – the only place that really matters. A Week 4 tendon tear ripped my left bicep from off the bone, resulting in a surgery, resulting in a rehab, which, all in all, stole 12 weeks of football from me. But as Pray, and Waldo, Ernie, Sting, Salem, and Oppen have had it worse and came back – and as Gronk is currently grinding it out – they don’t allow for excuses or self-pity. As they persisted, I must persist. And although I have missed time before – whether the classic ankle, or the finger tendon the season before the Revolution – or the plantaris the season before the Enlightenment. This injury was different. It wasn’t the career ender, but it was an eye opener. Every player is mortal. Even if you all have made me feel I was more than that at times. But the truth is the truth.
Next season will be my last as Commissioner. I will enter the Jewball galus, like Zez and MVP, Effie, and Waldo, and Prime. Dreaming of return. I will self-exile, not because of the injury. Not because it’s time or because I’m done. Just because I am replacing one persistence with another. My Jewish persistence has come into direct conflict with my Jewball persistence. One return will usurp another. One dream for another.
Jewball family, it’s been a 23-year dream. A dream that keeps getting better. A shared dream. A dream that is not over, nor will it be over. Jewball is our home and it always will be. Although the game must be played and played well and like you mean it – Jewball transcends the four painted corners of the turf and the orange cones we lay down. We all know it. So all that is left is to say thank you. In my absence – whether temporary (as I expect) or permanent (as you never know), it is on the collective to step up. To draft, and show on time, run, catch, grab, and tackle. To party, and congregate, and support. To be there for the games and for each other like never before. To post, write, and recap – produce and be creative and clever – in new and interesting ways . To make sure that those of us in the exile always have a home to return to.
We enter the off season with a message and motivation that will never change. Maybe we haven’t used this exact word before, but it’s always been a message of persistence. In health – both physical and mental. In fitness. In remaining unified and focused. In rising above this world which begs us to crumble while daring us to persist.

The categories below are made to give respect to those who we believe have earned the highest Jewball achievements of the season. While some polls are limited to choices, some have write in ballots. Please consider what these players do on the field, what they do for their teams, the stats they accumulate, and how they impact the game each time they walk on the gridiron. Please note that the overall MVP award is a distinction given by our commissioner during the season recap (although he does consider the vote). Please only vote once. Make every vote count!! (Note: Most performance categories carry a 10 games played minimum)

Yaron Markfeld	8:43 PM (0 minutes ago)
to me

Vets Rooks Recap
I have previously waxed effusively on the virtues of Vets Rooks. So this recap will be mostly about the plays made or missed on the field. And speaking of missing, let me begin by shouting out those I missed on VR Sunday. Besides my Vets who are long gone from the game and all but forgotten, I wish O was there. I wish Singer showed up. I wish Munch was there. And Prime, and Goldberg, and Gronk. My Jewball heart belongs to the Vets. Not because they are better people or better friends than the Rooks. But because by definition they have been on this island with me the longest. And the more time on the island, the better. As I told them before we lost…we already won.
(I wrote the above about three weeks ago. Now, I write after Week 20, as I pitifully try to recap the ancient past. And I do so out of a sense of obligation. To all you fine people who bring it every week in so many ways. But, I cannot pretend I did not see the post VR Championship episode of TBI, which astutely pointed out that VR has lost its luster. It likely has. I think recaps have also fallen from their once lofty pedestal. Neither because of diminished quality of the product (in my opinion). Both, I believe, because they no longer serve their initial need. VR was instituted to bring electricity and freshness to a long season that was starting to stale. Recaps were meant to make sure that Jewball felt unified and lend it a dignity and import. To make it matter. Well, twenty years later – freshness and electricity are not the issue. In fact, some might argue that VR is starting to BE the end of season staleness. It could be it needs a reboot. Perhaps in All Star Game form. Not sure. Not next year though. Think next year will have juice. Seismic realignment of the classes. Plus we are tied at 3-3 over the VR winners since the Revolution. We need a tie breaker. After that….we can think about changing it up. As for recaps, I’ll keep at it – but – with the chat, TBI, and video, recaps are like waiting for your local TV news at 8pm to break major stories. But, I will persist – if for no  other reason, but not have Yaron and Kut bombarding me with guilt-inducing stickers)
The Vets game – Juniors v. Seniors came down to a returning Vet who both showed up and missed the game. Way before I knew how last week would go, I am on the record (aka TBI) as stating that the player I am most impressed with this season is Snow – the MVP. And subsequent to VR Sunday, Snow’s Crocs beat my Cronies – so this may be coming off as bitter. It isn’t. It’s a recap. It’s what happened. I really wanted the Seniors to win. We had a great shot. Even with Singer opting out (though – for the record – he came out and DID PLAY ONE SNAP! ), the Seniors has enough to beat a Junior team that was without much of their marquee talent. Yet, minutes before the game, the Seniors lost their QB. Snow had a rough night and couldn’t make it. Tabak pulled the same vanishing act for the Juniors, but was replaced by Storm. And he’s not his team’s QB. Rabin’s gonna beat me up for constantly beating him up, but the addition of Snow as QB was supposed to be the big change the Seniors needed. A QB with championship pedigree, who can move the ball with both long and short passes – accuracy, a game plan, and a Veteran’s savviness. But, he couldn’t make it. So Tom stepped in. And immediately did himself a huge favor with a P6 on the first play of the game. Yaron doing Rabin things. Sorry, Bin. But the good times for the Seniors did not last. Tom threw 2 picks in his only 2 sets at QB. The 2nd of which gave Yaron and the Juniors the ball on the Senior 12 yard line. In Jordan’s first official game back from injury, Yaron wisely tested his timing and agility and exposed a weakness. After throwing a screen to Storm, which Jordan managed to blow up, the following play was a fake screen to Storm with Zada over the top. Jordan got caught in the middle and Zada hauled in a pass for a score that tied it up. Around this time Snow showed up. The Seniors were saved! After he warmed up with Singer for a while, the MVP came in. And it just never clicked. The huddles weren’t crisp. The passing game never materialized. The hopes of the Seniors were slowly dashed. A late TD pass to Daveo was not enough. Yaron and the Juniors fashioned more of a stable offense. Every time it seemed like Yaron was in trouble, Spira bailed him out at TE. The Vet of all Vets, playing for the Juniors due to his newbie status in the modern era of Jewball, has proven himself time and again this season as sure handed as ever. Anyone ever see this guy drop a catchable ball? I have memories of this guy going back 25 years. Always the same thing. Easy passes, tough passes, bombs, screens, slants, crosses – if it’s catchable, Spira catches it. He had 2 sacks and the go ahead TD for the Juniors. He picked a bunch of first downs as well and key yards when the Seniors were looking for a crack to sneak through and get back in the game. It never came. Juniors win and Spira gets himself a Jewball.
To begin with, say what you want about VR not being the hottest ticket in 2024, but the hype of Smores Freshies remained. And then seeing Rook and Ernie in Smores Crimson gave this Vet chills. Of course seeing the newly minted Freshies play in their first VR was equally powerful. Sherrif, Ice Man, Mike, Blitz, Daxxy, Fox, BK – damn….thank you God….we are living in an era of Jewball wonderments.
The game started in my favorite way possible. Pray to Dobs and the n Dobs with a juke for the ages and a Smore TD. Let’s Go!! Unfortunately for the Smores, that was the highlight of the day. Dachs doesn’t get the love that Pray gets or the hate that Yaron gets. He sort of just exists in the Jewball solar system as a dark star. A star, but obfuscated in some way. I was able to watch him in the Smores Freshies game and then again this past Sunday in the Dawgs BOP matchup. He is so talented. He does astounding things on a football field. Especially when he’s with his brother, Dax. After the Smores went up 1-0, Dachs threw 3 TD passes – one prettier than the next. The poise and accuracy he displays while avoiding the sack is like nothing Jewball has ever seen. Though he’s been prone to the bad pick this season, he, more often than not, makes up for it with masterful point scoring drives. His TD to Dax over Rook in the corner was a stunner. His game icer to Zinn over the middle – zipping it in to a tight, closing window was perfection. After all this praise, I’m giving the Jewball to Dax for scoring the 2 TDs that made the difference. That TD catch in the corner was so pretty. Hats off also to the Sherrif for making some “classic” Sherrif catches – the kind that look like they have no chance, but then he bumbles, stumbles, secures, and makes the crowd go wow. Think VR was Sherriff’s spotlight game. A lot of people finally saw what he is capable of. Played big in a big game. Smores lose in less heartbreaking fashion than last year, but lose nonetheless.
I was overseas for the VR Finals, but of course wanted the Vets to win. So proud of the Vets as they made this a  game despite truly overwhelming odds. Even though the Rooks were without some major stars from their playoff game, including Sherrif, Fox, and Ice Man, they still had their big 4 of Dachs, Dax, Zinn, and Oppen (next year’s Smores!). And it was enough. If I recall from the updates Pray was providing, the game was tied in the early going. Beast scored for the Vets, Zinn for the Rooks. But, much like 3.  in their prior game, the Freshies only gave up 1 and scored 3. Dachs, once again just so sneaky good, did his thing and scored with Stats and ran 1 in. This time, the QB with as much competitive grit and energy as any Jewballer ever, gets himself a Jewball and goes 2-2 as a Freshie – winning back to back VR Championships along with his unprecedentedly remarkable class. Rookies, I can’t stomach us Vets losing to you arrogant pieces of garbage, but….when I take a breather and a step back…and remove my player helmet and put on my Commish cap…I am completely dumbfounded by your presence. We Vets want to beat you and will beat you – that won’t stop – but we thank you so much for joining us. For making us feel that our commitment to Jewball was worth it. For letting us know why we kept this going for so long. It truly does seem like we everything we built was for this moment. To welcome you here. So welcome, and we’ll get you next year.