Halftime Snack

Myles Brand-ed the NCAA
By Kyle C. Leach
September 16, 2009 - 11:30pm
Leader of college athletics loses battle with cancer at age 67.

College athletics lost one of its own on Wednesday. Dr. Myles Brand passed away at the age 67. As the president of the National Collegiate Athletics Association from 1993 until his death from pancreatic cancer, Brand was a leader looking to model leaders.

The NCAA scripted the release of his death notice, building a memorial to Brand, just the fourth CEO of the Association, via IBM WebSphere Portal. There is a lot to see and read about Brand's tenure.

Local sports bar provides comfort for Syracuse football loss
By Kyle C. Leach
September 12, 2009 - 6:27pm
Chadwick's in the Eastwood section earns kudos.

 Halftime Snack found a local watering hole for the Penn State game, walking east to Chadwick’s Bar & Grill, located on James Street in the Edgewood section of Syracuse.   

Football Friday - Penn State
By Kyle C. Leach
September 12, 2009 - 11:17am
Orange football team heads south for monster road game.

There is nothing the Orange can lose in Happy Valley. 

Halftime Snack is late this week -- poor planning and an active sports-social calendar on the South Side (SU field hockey and then Corcoran HS football) cut Friday Football at its knees.  But that does not mean Snack isn't thinking this morning:

From O.K. to P.K.
By Kyle C. Leach
September 10, 2009 - 3:18pm
Large scale game of soccer sometimes diminished to one-on-one of penalty kicks.

Gunslingers settled disputes with a quick-draw at high noon.  Soccer has its own nerve-testing version:  the penalty kick.

''I felt a great deal of fear.''  Diego Maradona, the Argentine soccer great, said after scoring the decisive penalty kick to advance Argentina past Italy in the 1990 World Cup semifinals.

Donovan McNabb shows up for Syracuse football's encouraging loss
By Kyle C. Leach
September 6, 2009 - 9:21pm
The star of Syracuse football past visits the Carrier Dome for the first time since graduation.

Many years have passed since the sounds of possibility and admiration swirled amid the Syracuse football fans exiting the Carrier Dome.

More amazing, this Saturday these sounds were after a loss.  The pre-season hype generated by the of hiring new head coach Doug Marrone even prompted former quarterback Donovan McNabb to return to his alma mater for the first time since departing for the NFL in 1999.  Hear what Super Five had to say.

Football Friday - Minnesota
By Kyle C. Leach
September 4, 2009 - 12:21pm
Preview column about Syracuse football debuts with season-opener tidbits.

You can maul us, if we mention Greg…

This is a Syracuse QB-free sports blog. 

(Unless the SU player wore #5).  I won’t name drop classmates here, except Will Dugan.  All references to the player will be "the Duece."

I Like Mike

Need money for school? Saratoga a good bet
By Kyle C. Leach
September 4, 2009 - 11:35am
SU grad student searches for alternate resources when loan money stalls.

The summer is over and all my money is gone. 

I moved from Philadelphia to Syracuse during the summer, had a nose job to eliminate snoring, and bought a car. 

I, perhaps like you, have no job, no cash, and I’m at the mercy of the student loan money. 

I turned to horse racing, in need of financial energy.

Horse races have been run on Union Avenue for 145 years. New Yorkers love gambling:  gotta take money to make money.