Life is good. It’s October, the weather is in the high 70s, and according to www.weather.com, it will be all week.
Although the Red Sox played a key series against the Yankees last weekend, the baseball playoffs are beginning right now, just when I was starting to get sick of watching the sport.
Football is in full swing, both in the NFL and college ranks and the good teams (NFL: Colts, Bengals, Eagles; Coll.: USC, Alabama, Virginia Tech) are separating themselves from the bad (NFL: Packers, Vikings, Raiders; Coll.: Iowa, OU, Pitt).
Hockey is finally starting and from the looks of it so far, it’s going to be pretty exciting to watch. And if you’re from Boston, what more could you ask for than an opening night match with the Montreal Canadiens?
The Knicks are overspending on an unmotivated big man, so I guess NBA basketball is just around the corner. That means slam dunks – by far, more entertaining than any Big Papi home run.
This is truly the best time of the year to be a sports fan. However, this extends to Husky sports as well.
The Northeastern field hockey team is rolling through the early part of their schedule and haven’t lost since Aug. 28. With the Red Sox not scheduled to play until 7 p.m. tonight you might want to catch the Huskies as they try to win their 11th straight when they host Harvard at Sweeney Field this afternoon at 4 p.m.
After starting the season on a tear of their own, winning four straight, the Crimson have struggled as of late, going 1-4 over their last five, including three consecutive losses. Nothing is a given, but with the Huskies playing like they are, this afternoon’s game could be a blowout.
The Huskies next head down to Philly for a Friday night tilt with Drexel. The Dragons are 0-3 in CAA play, but have an overall home record of 6-2. Depending on how things go, Northeastern has a chance to enter next week’s 2004 NCAA quarterfinal rematch with bitter rival UConn on a 12-game winning streak. That game just so happens to be the first of a season long four-game homestand for NU.
Believe it or not, the field hockey regular season slate is more than halfway over, so get out to Sweeney Field and show some support. Not only are they Northeastern’s only hope for a national champion, they’re actually really fun to watch. If you’ve never been to a field hockey game, then you owe it to yourself to catch one.
On a separate note, the football team heads to Amherst for their second chance at revenge against former NU coach, and current UMass head, Don Brown. The Huskies fell just short last year, 26-22, in front of a ridiculously small crowd at Parsons Field. For a game of such magnitude, the NU football fans sure showed what they were made of by pulling a Don Brown – that is, abandoning their team.
Rocky Hager deserves a lot of props for holding the team together last year and for sticking to his guns this year. I can’t imagine how hard it was for him to try and sell his system on a bunch of guys that were recruited by and played for Brown.
And although they started out slow, going 0-3, don’t be surprised if the Huskies pull an upset against the Minutemen’s top ranked defense.
If redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Orio is healthy and can manage to spread the ball around and free up space for senior receiver Cory Parks, the Dogs will have a chance. By the way, Parks needs just 44 yards receiving this week to become just the second Husky to ever eclipse the 3,000-yard plateau for their career.
In terms of all-time records, Parks is currently on pace to not only break the career receptions and yards record at NU but the single season marks as well. And it’s not like the team is doomed, either. Many forget the Dogs are only 1-1 in the Atlantic-10, so they’re by no means eliminated from the title hunt. However, with a date with No. 1-ranked New Hampshire and its vaunted offense looming on Oct. 22, a win this weekend would greatly help their chances.
The volleyball team is also at a pretty crucial spot in their season. They’re currently 1-1 on a brutal seven-game road swing in which they play five CAA teams. As of today they are in the middle of the pack, with a 5-3 conference record. I wouldn’t say their season is on the line, but with CAA leader Hofstra on deck this Saturday, they have a good chance to close the gap in the standings and make a push to the top of the leaderboard.
Any way you look at it, excitement is growing around the world of sports, and Huntington Avenue is no exception.
– Max Lederman can be reached at [email protected].
