Freshman Football Team Finds Out No National Anthem Before Game. With No Music Playing, They Change All That.

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick ignited a national controversy when he sat during “The Star-Spangled Banner” before a preseason game and took a knee during the anthem the following week.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneels during the national anthem before the team’s Sept. 1 preseason football game against the San Diego Chargers in San Diego. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Kaepernick cited minority oppression as the reason for his protest and vowed to continue it “until that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent.”

Other athletes have followed suit:

Denver Broncos inside linebacker Brandon Marshall kneels on the sideline during the national anthem prior to a game against the Carolina Panthers in Denver on Thursday. (AP Photo/Joe Mahoney)

Seattle Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane sits as the national anthem plays before a Sept 1 preseason game against the Oakland Raiders in Oakland, California. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Seattle Reign soccer star Megan Rapinoe takes a knee during the national anthem before a game against the Chicago Red Stars on Sept. 4. (Image source: Fox News)

So as the first Sunday of NFL games approaches for the 2016 season — landing poignantly on the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks — a great deal of attention will be paid to what players, if any, opt out of standing for the national anthem.

But getting considerably less attention is what a high school freshman football team from Flint, Michigan, did amid the anthem furor.

On the last day of August, the Lapeer Lightning’s squad hit the field before their away game against Carman-Ainsworth and heard the announcer say there would be no national anthem prior to the contest.

With that, the Lapeer freshman players stood on their sideline, removed their helmets, faced the flag and — with no music playing — sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” themselves.

“Our crowd stood with them for every note!” Chell Byrnes wrote on her Facebook post. “Very proud to be a Lightning Mom tonight!!”

 

Eddie L. Kindle, Carman-Ainsworth Community Schools superintendent, told Liftable that “like most schools in the state of Michigan, we choose to play the national anthem prior to the highest level of competition” — which that day was the later junior varsity game. He added that the format didn’t amount in any way to a protest and that the district would never refuse to play the anthem.

For Lapeer head coach Bryan Sahr, it was a unique moment: “I’ve been with most of these players for three years now,” he told Liftable. “They’re just an awesome group of kids. It makes me incredibly emotional, and I don’t usually get emotional.”

This story has been updated.

(H/T: Young Conservatives)

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Ryan Howard not pleased with reduced playing time

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Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard is entering the final month of his contract with the team, so he doesn’t understand why they are cutting his playing time.

According to a report by Bob Ford of Philly.com on Wednesday, Howard recently learned that manager Pete Mackanin intends to play him less in the last month of the 2016 season so that platoon partner Tommy Joseph, a 25-year-old rookie, can spend more time facing right-handed pitching. The three-time All-Star doesn’t quite agree with the decision.

“You’re talking about an evaluation process of where you’ve gotten to see players this year play,” Howard, who has all but announced that he won’t be returning to the Phillies next season, was quoted as saying. “And you’ll have another opportunity to see those same players play again next year and I won’t be here. So, for me, I just want to play. I don’t necessarily think it’s right or fair, considering this is my last month here, but it is interesting.

“The manager shouldn’t have to answer the question in the media,” Howard went on. “I think that’s something that you talk to your players about. That’s one thing. Having to answer that question as far as the evaluation process, for me it’s tough. I’m not going to sit here and lie. I’ve got one more month here and I just want to play and finish out playing. So, it’s like I’m just trying to do my time, finish out this last month, and try to keep playing somewhere else.”

The 36-year-old Howard has largely been awful in 2016, batting just .195/.249./.440. His power has shown up sporadically with 20 home runs and 45 RBIs on the year, but he is no longer an everyday option at first base. Still, Howard got his act together with a .314 batting average and six home runs in 16 August games. It makes sense that the former NL MVP would want to spend as much of his final stretch with the Phillies on the field as possible, while also showcasing whatever talent he has left for a potential new contract from another team this winter.

Howard is in the last official year of a five-year, $ 125 million extension he signed in 2010, one of the more disatrous deals in recent memory. He has a $ 23 million club option for 2017, but the Phillies are expected to exercise his $ 10 million buyout clause.

At 60-73, Philadelphia doesn’t have a lot left to play for. While it’s intuitive that Mackanin would want to get his young guys more reps before season’s end, you’d think they’d give a warmer sendoff for one of the greatest Phillies of this generation, no matter how crippling his contract has been and how much his production has slipped. Then again, it’s probably not all that surprising given the way Howard has been treated around those parts recently.

H/T theScore

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Will Tim Tebow Join These Notable Athletes In Playing Pro Football & Baseball?

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Tim Tebow isn’t the first ex-professional football player to try to make it in Major League Baseball, and he likely won’t be the last.

There’s no questioning Tebow’s athletic ability — he arguably is one of the greatest college quarterbacks of all time — but life in the NFL was a different story for his throwing motion.

So now he’s turned his sights toward baseball, as he hopes to play professionally in both sports, much like Jim Thorpe, Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders did.

Click to see notable athletes who played pro baseball and football >>

Thumbnail photo via Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports Images
Story photo via Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports Images

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Cristiano Ronaldo Playing Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul At Poker Is Epic

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Cristiano Ronaldo is a man with more than a few quid to spare, and given he’s injured at the minute, he doubles as a man with a bit of spare time on his hands.

When the common person like you or me gets a few quid and some spare time, it usually ends up with a dirty kebab after numerous pints and an Uber home at silly o’clock in the morning.

But this is Ronaldo, and he decided to take on Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul in a charity poker match, with the small matter of £15,000 at stake.

The Real Madrid star, who has enjoyed arguably the best year of his career in terms of trophies, winning both the Champions League and Euro 2016, was playing for the Right To Play charity, while Paul was trying to win the cash for Save The Children.

Check it out:

And, because he basically wins anything he tries his hand at, Ronaldo claimed the cash, leaving Paul wishing he had some kind of help from Walter White/Heisenberg to help him out.

With the Brazilian Ronaldo also a keen poker player, maybe the next clash needs to be Ronaldo vs Ronaldo, to see who the true poker king is.

YEAH, POKER BITCH! (Apologies if you’ve never seen Breaking Bad).

Football – UNILAD
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