On this eve of my 42nd birthday, it is a time for reflection. Where do I begin? Do I begin emailing with Rabin at age 25 – when we thought we were ancient – and Jewball was having an off year as we realized Queens was a Jewball graveyard. And we weren’t sure if the game would survive in a new land. And I think we felt old. I had been playing all of three years! But…y’know…I was smitten. I was committed. He saw that. So, kind of like what Yaron and I have now, Rabin saw me as a co-commissioner. And I remember him saying, let’s just end it. My inclination was the same, but then I said – let’s push it a bit…I wrote him a big pump up email and I concluded with a hope and prayer that we play until we are 30. Ay 25, 30 sounded ridiculously old. Like to think about playing football at 30 was foolish. Cause 30 is super old and out of it and over the hill and just bury them. That’s what we thought. I said it almost as a joke, thinking that we would try to keep playing for a while longer in the 5Ts and retire at 28 or 29 because….30 was beyond playing age, right? Or do I begin when Esses came down at 31 and made me believe there were games even beyond 30. Or do I begin when Viv came down at 41 and – although he seemed pretty darn old – we realized there were games after middle age. Or do I begin with Eddie who is my hero!? Over 50 and ripping it up with his kids! Please, please, God….merit me that! I think though the place to start is this afternoon when my Jewballers demanded a recap of Week 11. Why? Because looking back is what makes us old. The present is what you have to live for! Celebrate the awesomeness of the present! That keeps you young. And, for Jewball, there is no greater birthday, er, present that what we have going today. 
This philosophical intro segues nicely to what I want to discuss as we go into the last stretch of season before us. It’s an old topic for recaps, but worth digging into once a season. I’ve been seeing something over the past two weeks and we need to confront it as a league. That is this: We all have physical limitations. Our bodies can only do certain things. Our strides are based on criteria we cannot change. The size of our hands. Our eye sight. Our reflexes. These are physical attributes that you either are blessed with or not. What has no limitation – other than that which you impose on yourself – is your mental state when you play the game. What I mean is, your desire to compete. Yes, I know we come down for brotherhood and a good time, but….in my opinion….we should always show up ready to go ALL IN mentally. You have carved out this time to play Jewball. Clear your head, come out with fire and an insatiable desire to compete to the best of your ability. I say this only because I feel that in Week 10 and again in Week 11, the teams were equal in talent, but one was just mentally tougher than the other. And that shouldn’t happen. I ask everyone who signs up to come down with as passion and will and commitment to winning and competing as they can harness. You only have so many games in your life. Give each one whatever you got.
Week 11 was the CLIMATE CHANGE BOWL sponsored by Cow Farts. In early January we had record high temps. The game saw 60 degrees and sun. Back in the day when we got a warm weather day in the middle of the winter I was grateful. Now, I’m scared. But let’s go back to sleep on that issue until it’s too late. Good. Done. The amazing weather summoned a who’s who of Jewball talent. Game 1 saw Gronk come back after an elongated hiatus to reunite with his Cronies and take on an old foe, Yaron. Just when we were talking about Prager being locked in to the 8am slot, we booted him to the 945 to see if Yaron and Gronk could rekindle some of that Magical Season magic. And, alas, it was not meant to be. Yaron was stocked with some old school all stars in Mighty, Singer, Tom, and Munch – along with new school gamers Prime/Beast and Sam. Gronk with Cronies assembled, plus Jordan, Kut, and Asa had a really tough task ahead of them. And they were not up to it. Now, I give Gronk a pass because rust is real. I don’t want to hear anything about Gronk not being a QB. You are forgetting the evolution last year. He is legit and I expect him to be a competitive QB in this league. He has all the tools and gifts. All he has to do is want it. And speaking of wanting it, Mighty “Give Me the Damn Ball” Rat and Singer have that mental toughness we spoke about earlier. They care about what happens on every play. They do not want to let their teams down and – more importantly – they don’t want to let themselves down. Because if you aren’t scolding yourself over the course of the week for plays your messed up in Jewball…you are missing out : ) And Yaron is the same. And Munch is the same. So it was not surprising that Yaron jumped out to a 1-0 lead. Then 2-0….Then 3-0. It was a lot Mighty at the beginning. A bomb down the  right sideline dropped in perfectly. A cross with signature spin move. Gronk and Dark were struggling. No other way to say it. Just wasn’t vintage Gronk, combined with a few dropped balls and some embarrassingly weak flag pulling, it was evident rather early that Yaron would win. The only question really was by how much. Well, Singer – not to be out-statted – put up 3 scores late, including a controversial scoop on a low thrown ball that he secured before it hit the ground. Yaron’s crew would score 7. Gronk threw one TD on the day following a sweet over the shoulder pick by Jordan and run back to the 5. The final score was 7-3 as Jordan and Vegh P6ed Yaron late in the day. The Jewball will go to a man who is covetous of the ball and our game in all the best ways. A man whose ass I have kissed since the day I first saw him- and rightly saw. A man who wears pink with pride. Mighty, my brother, Jewball to you. Honorable Mention of course to Singer for the same stat line (or shall I say rat-line) but Mighty scored early to tear Dark’s heart out. You merely stomped on it while it was on the ground. Recap of Game 2 for another time…maybe tomorrow…stay tuned.

Game 1
8am:

Dark

Gronk – QB
Wilmer
Goldberg
Jordan
Kut
Vegh
Asa

Pink

Yaron – QB
Sam
Singer
Mighty
Tom
Munch
Beast/Prime

945

Dark

Prager – QB
MK
Prime

Steveo
Tom
Mo

Colors

Yaron – QB
Beast
Gronk
Jordan
Daveo
Ari
Storm

Click here to support Kut’s bid for his first ever Jewball

There is something to Jewball getting back to business as usual. Last year was the magical season because so many things happened to set up the by the book season we are in the midst of. So many things fell into place to breathe life back into our comatose game. The contrast between where we were before the season and where we wound up was phenomenal. The fact that so many guys came back. The fact that so much talent came out. It was EXACTLY what we needed to revive a very proud and long legacy. A legacy of…well….we found out this season a bit more about our roots.

All kidding aside, as we mark the halfway point of this 2019-2020 Jewball campaign, by far the biggest development of our season was the lines dropped – however few – from the man we call The Oracle. Every single one of us plays this game today because of a game he started sometime in the early to mid 90s in Queens. Would you have played football in some form or another regardless of that game? Some of you for sure. Some maybe. Some maybe not. But it certainly would not be this game. Because this game is Jewball. It traces itself back to Queens and it is it’s own thing. There are pick up games and there is Jewball. There are leagues and there is Jewball. So, it is really an honor to have The Oracle occasionally checking in with us, overseeing our progress, and hopefully make it down for a photo opp one of these days. Right behind that is an excellent new crop of talent. From gamer arms like Mo and Prager, to talented characters like Dobs, Storm, Brody, and Salem, to the return of Singer as a regular…we can once again see a bright future for our game. Almost more than anything, I love and appreciate that when Snow comes in from Chicago, or Jesus comes in from Cincy, or (in theory) if Zezzy is in from Israel or any other vet is around and wants to get a game in – they have a home. My hope is that one day when you are a vet and want to get a game in down the line, there will be a Jewball home for you. You will be known and respected and welcomed – just by name. Just by saying you are a Jewballer. That is the dream.

Week 10 kicked off the 2020 calendar and – as we began with – was business as usual. And there is every reason to celebrate that. 30 degrees and windy. The midseason aches and pains are in full force. 8am is early. But….14 players – the usual suspects – come out, put their heads down – no excuses – and play the game to the best of their abilities.

Now, I have never completed the Daf Yomi cycle, but they say it’s less about the daf and more about the yomi. The consistency. Establishing the pattern and perfecting the quality of showing up. And that’s what we do in Jewball over the winter months. We gear up and we show up. And the Prager v. Yaron 8am game seems to have become a locked in matchup that we can count on. A real Jewballer can be counted on. The more you give the game, the more it will give you.

So it was Yaron v. Prager and with Beast and Storm running later, Ari jumped from Prager’s Colors to Yaron’s Dark. Naturally 🤨 Yaron took the ball to start the game and went with the wind. The wind was fierce and it seemed to be the kind of day where running the ball and short patterns would dominate the playcalling. Yaron is an excellent play caller and he dialed up what was needed. Screens to Prime with Zada and Ari blocking. Tight end roll outs to Rabin. QB scrambles. On that opening drive, whatever they tried worked. Eventually, Zada – Mr. Consistancy himself – catches one in the endzone. Dark up 1.

About this time Beast and Storm show up and Beast – instead of coming into the game – starts to set up the honeymoon suite on the sidelines. Turns out his woman is going to be coming out to witness his prowess. But will he impress?

So Ari comes back to Colors and Beast/Storm go to Dark. Now with everything settled, Prager gets to work. It was evident from the beginning that it was going to be very hard to move the ball. For both sides, but clearly more so for Colors. Kut, Jordan, MK….dropping balls that needed to be caught. The only seemingly reliable set of mitts were those belonging to Wilmer. After making a big run to get Colors most of the way there, he caps off the drove with a tough jump ball in the front of the endzone. Game is knotted at 1. Both sides kept it safe for a while and it resulted in a 20 minute scoring drought. On this day, though, Dark had the overall advantage on offense and defense. It wasnt necessarily a talent advantage although with Zada, Goldberg, Beast, Storm, Prime, and very effective Rabin on defense, Yaron had many reliable weapons – what Dark had was the mental advantage. Mostly on defense. While Colors was missing flags, getting bullied, and letting short plays become long plays. It felt like Yaron would eventually breakthrough. On a 4th and long from their own 30, Colors had a great opportunity to take over with field position. Sam was in pursuit and Yaron was spun around looking for somewhere to. Sam was close on sacks all day, but….close wont cut it. Just ask Beast. Yaron was forced to the right sideline and Jordan had come across the field to bottle up the run and close in on Yaron. But just as the sack was on and after about 15 seconds of scrambling…..Yaron somehow finds Goldberg just beyond the first down marker – on his knees. Catch is made. It extends the drive and leads to a Zada diving TD. 2-1 Dark.

Colors continued to struggle, mainly due to the collective defense mindset of Dark. Prime, Yaron, Rabin, Zada….collapsing on every play and plugging everything up to make it feel like Colors never had a chance. Maybe there were adjustments to be made, but on this day Prager and co could not figure them out. Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, Yaron was the complete opposite. The wind didnt even seem to bother him. With the short plays working, that opened things up downfield and for some reason his passes cut the wind and got to their destinations. His 3rd TD was a 28 yard strike to Beast who celebrated with the love of his life with an epic on field 

. Pretty cool moment. Happy for them. With 8 minutes left in regulation, Yaron hit Goldberg to put his squad up by 3 and that was that. Jordan had to go march against Jewball hatred.

Jewball for this one goes to Yaron. Every other QB on the day could not figure out how to put up points in the elements. But Bron had no problems. That makes him an MVP and a Jewball winner.

I will now disappoint some, but hearten others. Game 2 was a tie and I wasnt there, so no recap and no Jewball. Honorable mention to Kut for coming back after heading home to be there for his Jewball brothers – once again proving his unparalleled commitment to our game. And I heard he had a hell of a game. Thank you, Kut. Klan to Jordan and Brody for failing to communicate which create the unnecessary situation which brought about Kut’s heroics. Sorry about that, Jewballers.

Half the season left. Bowl Games behind us. It’s the dog days of winter. Who wants WEEK 11?

WEEK 10: TEAMS

Dark

Yaron – QB
Zada
Prime
Goldberg
Beast
Storm
Rabin

Colors

Prager – QB
Jordan
Sam
Tabak
Ari
Kut
MK

9:45

Dark

Rabin – QB
Zada
Prime
Beast
Storm
MK
Salem

Colors

Mo – QB
Brodybro
Eddie
Tabak
Goldberg
Xavier
Ari

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year for Jewball. Every year, within a twelve day span, we have six games of Jewball. 4 regular season games – which this year was increased by unforeseen circumstances – and 2 Bowl Games. Now, although the Bowl Games don’t “count” for stats and don’t always get recaps – they are extremely important. Why? Because Sundays are business. We come out – we have work to do – we do that work. Bowl Games are holidays. They are both getting together with the family on milestone days in the calendar – and also about making a statement: When we have a day off….and even if it’s cold…and even if we went out late the night before – my COMMITMENT is to my Jewball brothers and to myself becoming a better player – dare I say a better person. Jewball teaches you much about your physical self, but every game is also a clinic in humanity. And what makes us better people than hating on and cursing out people we love?
The season continues with Week 10 this coming Sunday. Halfway mark. Much football to come.
So, Week 9 was special. I apologize again for locking out the early game before opening it up, but with Snow and Jesus in from out of town – I knew that some spots were already taken, so figured to make it a Vets Rooks game. We will have the usual end of season Vets Rook Game sometime in late February or March…and that will of course be open to everyone.
This Mid-Season Vets Rooks Game was billed to be a major showdown. MVP 2012 v. MVP  2018. All Stars v. Future Stars. On paper, it was a loaded game. The Vets had MVP, Steveo, Daveo, Jordan, Mighty, Singer, PJs, Jesus, and Kut. That’s a formidable lineup. But…Vets always need to show that they can overcome time (injuries, aches, slowness). The Rooks were a powerhouse as well: Yaron, Pringle, Mo, Beast, Zada, Logan, and MK. Tough to say on paper who had the edge. There was definitely an electricity leading up to the game and it was felt on the field before the game. I can’t speak for everyone on the field, but the Vets are a proud people and we really wanted to pull this one out – for us and for all the Vets before us. No one likes Rooks.
Daveo and Storm canceled late so both teams lost a high-motor guy, but both teams had enough talent to win and no excuses.
The Vets got their first on a deep out to Steveo. As he is apt to do, Steveo makes the catch and winds his way through traffic – goes 47 yards and Vets are up 1-0. The lead held for a while. Mighty picked a ball soon after and the Vets had some reason to believe. However, it was a tricky game. Neither team was moving the ball particularly well. And for good reason. There was a lot of talent on the field. Munch and Kut were all over Yaron. And Beast and MK were all over Snow. Snow also had the disadvantage of being on the rusty side. He likely has played in more big games than any of us, but it has been a while. The calm and confidence was there, but the long ball was not. The Rookie defense knew that they could stay at home and just smother the underneath stuff. When passes were long, Zada was there every time to run interference and make sure nothing damaging happened. On the Vets side, Mighty was a terror in the middle of the field and eating up Yaron’s patented screens.
Soon enough Yaron found something that worked. And it worked well – twice. That would be a deep jump ball to Mo down the left sideline. Steveo had great coverage, but Mo is a young leaper and he has good hands. Twice in a fifteen minute span, Mo put up points with Yaron and the Rooks took the lead. The Vets had a chance to tie things up after a Jesus pick. Singer nearly pulled one in but he took a hit while he was trying to secure the ball and it fell to the turf. It was around this time that Singer was getting shaken up – and although of course he soldiered through the entire game, he was clearly in some pain and pushing himself. With ten minutes left, Snow put together a drive that kept the Vets alive – using his famous Singer to Mighty hook and ladder on a 4th and long. A few plays later, Jordan ran one in, but it was called back on an illegal block call by Logan. A play later – there was a clear score – this time to Singer. And, as MVP said, if that is the final TD pass of his career (and we hope it isn’t!), it is a perfect endnote. Snow to Singer is a legendary combination in the leagues around these parts – they have been an unstoppable force for decades. And you can say you were there when. More importantly than that melodrama, the Vets had life with a few minutes left. And as they were pumped up….they lowered the boom on Yaron on took over on downs. With 80 yards to go and the potential to win if they scored…Snow throws one just a bit too high and it was tipped by hi receiver….and….picked by Prager – who runs like a fiend. He catches and bolts for the endzone. And scores. Rooks break the hearts of all Jewball fans and defeat the Vets. MVP of affair is Zada for the defensive prowess.

Game 2 was the opposite of Game 1. It was an non-competitive disaster. We ended up having to play 3 games just to make it tolerable (re-started twice). Was a good time. With good people. But Prager has his team humming and Mo had his team bumbling. Just one of those days, Mo. Prager won the first two games 4-0 each. Switch sides and won 3-1. Quite the day for the man known as Pringle. Jewball to him.
Who wants WEEK 10?

Some Bowl games have recaps, some don’t. Team Yaron defeats Team Rabin 6-3. HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!!

Jan 1, 2020. LHS. 9-11am

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!!!

Team Black:

Rabin, Beast, Jordan, Goldberg, PJs, BD, Daveo

vs.

Team Colors:

Yaron, Kut, Ari, Prime, Tabak, Zada, Dobs

Vets Rooks videos below, credit to PJ’s. Recap to follow:

Early Game – 8:00AM

Team Blue-

Snow, Mighty, Singer, Daveo, Steveo, Jordan, Kut, Munch, PJs, Tom

vs.

Team White-

Yaron, Adamar, Zada, John, MK, Mo, Pringle, Logan

—

Late Game – 9:45AM

Team Blue-

Mo, Nussbaum, Sam, Dobs, Pants, Eddie, Logan

vs.

Team White-

Pringle, Brody, Salem, Tabak, Ari, Zada, Beast, Storm