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HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL Up on Upson-Lee Below are some images from Northside’s win at Upson-Lee Friday. ContHbutfd photon JBF dttjfe \Jr bBBH|-: Jacobi Rodriguez hauls in a pass. Ghu ,s, ,*' %• .~' ti (M& f HP%h . || •’Si R / j&Br Bn mßßmi mi ~ : ’ g^'^^"i'iiijß|j^B^^w|MMl)lW^^^^^” Mgy ~' M: ' Nick Bass dives into the endzone to score Northside’s fourth touchdown in the second half. ... ...... <.....•.-<• ■ Tijuan Green scores on a five-yard play to put the Eagles up 34-7. snar w .Pi ?Jr V .. ..: :.. ■■ ' . V. '. ... ... . -*■■■■;■■* - A Northside defender corrals an Upson-Lee runner. Itay 8««. ~Kh JACK MCKLAUS THINGS GO SOUFL | Bun USUALLY find fault $ £ Y ° U not^n'the < CL!J&. I IB iM emt - ' lies ikj _ ? HB IB PNfILYS^ScWJO R PR'RCJice | Vo^9^ENEl|jE' e o' * SPORTS lime to stick by Vick Sck of Vick? Sunday morning you were. Admit it. You went to church, sat in that pew or squatted down on that Adam Van Brimmer Morris News Service Falcons’ quarterback. And Michael Vick deserved your disgust. His erratic play was rea son enough, but then his confusing comments to HBO last week regard ing his team, his coaches and his receivers left all the Falcons’ faithful flum moxed. Who is this guy? The mature team player he pro fesses to be? Or the angry playmate longing for a bet ter sandbox? By 5 o’clock, you no long cared. Vick can be his own worst enemy, but he can also be his strongest ally. As his head coach, Jim Mora, said Sunday after Vick had dragged, carried and pushed his team past the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime, Vick “does things that no other foot ball player in the history of the game at that position has been able to do.” So let’s make a pact, Falcons fans: Let’s stand steadfast behind Vick for the rest of the season. If he has one of his 10- for-25-with-two-intercep tions games, let’s not criti cize him for his passing limitations. If he makes a poor deci sion in the red zone in a close game, let’s not rede- 111 fmb tar fkm tam Remington 710 Package 4 - I® 7mm Remmington m 300 Winchester MUST SHOW THIS AD Select Boots & Clothes 70% OFF Treestands Starting at SSO" Heritage Gun Safe $699" (30 x 60 textured green, fire rated) 90 Days Same As Cash. In Store Financing. Store Hours 603 Watson Blvd. 8:30 am - 6:30 pm Warner Robins Mon. - Sat. 022-9851 CHUCK’S BAIT a TAOKIE aUBaiBPfIWJ "Vick can be his own worst enemy, but he can also be his strongest ally." kneel er, and either stewed or asked the good Lord’s forgive ness for impure thoughts regard ing the fine the position of “goal line back” by demanding back-up quarterback Matt Schaub take those snaps. If he says something awkward, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt. We all get frustrated from time to time and say things we wish we could take back. Instead of being sick of Vick, let’s stick by Vick. He is an unconvention al quarterback who will never become a mobile passer like Steve Young. Nor will his talents evolve along the lines of Donovan McNabb’s. Stop expecting those things out of Vick. It’s time, as Mora also said after Sunday’s game, to talk less about what he can’t do and more about what he can. And that’s win. The Falcons are 4-2 and showed Sunday their offensive inefficiency in the first five weeks is far from a chronic condition. They turned three Pittsburgh turnovers into 21 points and scored 27 points - three touchdowns, two field goals - on drives that reached the red zone. Vick threw four touch down passes. And he was a magician in the clutch, making three plays that only he could make in the two biggest drives of the game. His first trick came in the drive at the end of regulation that resulted in a missed field goal. Facing third-and-10 at his own 18, Vick dropped back to pass. The Steelers’ pass rush forced him to step up in the pocket but did not give a SALE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2006 ♦ running lane up the field. At the last second, he shoveled a pass to fullback Justin Griffith, who ran for a first down. The overtime drive including two more plays fans won’t soon forget. The first was a seven yard bootleg run on sec ond-and-5 from Atlanta’s 37-yard line. Three plays later, facing a third-and-9 from the 45, Vick rolled out again to evade two blitzing Steelers. Withnochanceatrunning for a first down, he drew the defense and flipped a pass over a defender’s head to Alge Grumpier. The tight end caught it and ran 26 yards to set up the game-winning field goal. Vick was surprisingly low-key after the game. Usually when he posts a performance that quiets his critics, he rubs it in. But not Sunday. And his teammates, par ticularly Grumpier, showed they will stick by him. “It’s great to bring Mike back to a high after see ing him at his lowest,” said Crumpler, who caught three touchdown passes Sunday. “I knew he could not do it by himself. We just needed to step and make some plays happen for him.” Sick of Vick? Get over it, and enjoy the rest of the season. Adam Van Brimmer is an Atlanta-based writer for Morris News Service. E-mail him at adam. vanbrimmer@morris.com or telephone him at 404- 589-8424. 3B 00039801