purely about the contest.ddddddddddddWe certainly targeted him, Scott said.Not in a manner that is untoward. Hes a key pla

In September, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on college football.When I was 14, my brother enrolled at the University of Oregon, and I felt something like betrayal when he, and then my parents, started watching the Ducks. At that age, I was at peak insecure snottiness, and I pictured myself being above the weekly bacchanal that overtook Eugene every fall.A few years later, two things happened. First, I moved to Portland for college. Its not far, but its far enough and big enough that the Ducks arent the center of the universe -- especially within the ivory tower confines of my college -- and I found, to my surprise, that I missed them.I was homesick, awkward and wrestling with my identity. I wore my Oregon hoodie like armor in the campus coffee shop. And then LaMichael James happened. James, in 2009, was slippery and tough at the same time. He ripped through seams in defenses, always stayed up five or 10 or 50 yards longer than anyone expected. He had a side gig as a passable collegiate-level sprinter. Watching him, I realized for the first time: this is fun.Saturday afternoons, I would hole up in my dorm room, put on the Ducks game and forget about whatever existential crisis I was going through. My boss in college was a graduate of Oregon State University. He teased me about the Ducks reliance on Uncle Phil -- Phil Knight, Nike co-founder and Oregon booster. My comeback was always lethal: we were winning.Although DeAnthony Thomas didnt come along until two years later, nobody embodied the jubilant excitement of that time for the team like the electric running back. If James was a bullet train, Thomas was a fighter jet -- blistering fast, always faking and juking and making everyone else look like useless man-babies. He, too, ran track in the spring, better than James.?Thomas was undeniable. It was impossible not to get excited watching him.James, Thomas and the divinely gifted Marcus Mariota were the faces of Chip Kellys no-huddle, speed-of-sound offense. They were the bannermen of a charmed era in Oregon football.Southeastern Conference purists will tell you the Ducks only looked great at that time because of the conference they played in. Theres some truth to that, but it didnt matter to me. All I knew was that whatever else seemed confusing and uncertain in my world, I always knew the Ducks were going to win the day. The only question was whether theyd win by 50 points, or just 10.Everything about that time felt special. We (we is how Id begun thinking of the Ducks) were exciting, flashy and cool. The team would take the field in mirror-finish or black helmets and jerseys with wings on the shoulders and perform a weekly ritual of running opposing defenses to the point of exhaustion. Nobody could catch us, and we looked good, too.Although it took me 18 years to figure it out, this is the fact: underneath the slick uniforms, the speed, the 12-0 seasons, the more powerful attraction is always the tribe, the feeling of understanding exactly where in the world you belong.The Ducks still feel like home.Katelyn Best is a writer and journalist in Portland, Oregon. Her work has appeared in Portland Monthly, Excelle Sports and the Toast. Follow her on Twitter @BestKabest Wholesale Custom Soccer Jerseys Online . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Stitched Custom Soccer Jerseys . 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North Melbourne coach Brad Scott admits Marcus Bontempelli was in the clubs crosshairs on Saturday night but denies bad blood between the AFL rivals.The 20-year-old star was roughed up and set upon even before the first bounce in the Western Bulldogs 14-point win over the Kangaroos on Saturday night.Michael Firrito and Bontempellis cousin Nick Dal Santo were in the thick of the action, with plenty of Kangaroos making themselves known to the midfielder.With plenty of feeling in the air, the obvious link was to Bontempellis comments from their previous encounter, when he accused Lindsay Thomas of a malicious hit on Lachie Hunter.Bontempelli tactfully ignored a question about what drove the Kangaroos interest in him, but said it was certainly noticeable.Everyone in the stadium knew ... I got a great deal support from my teammates and it makes a physical night a great deal easier, he told 3AW.Its footy and thats what weve come to expect in this game. Physicality and aggression.They had my number tonight. Youve got to wear it sometimes.Melees at quarter-time and half-time look likely to earn the AFL a tidy sum in player fines, and there seemed to be too much gusto to beBoth Scott and Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said it was purely about the contest.ddddddddddddWe certainly targeted him, Scott said.Not in a manner that is untoward. Hes a key player.Without disrespecting the rest of their midfield hes their best midfielder in my view ... we really felt if we could get on top of him we could get on top of their midfield.Beveridge accepted that argument, saying he was an obvious candidate for a hard tag.You didnt have to be Nostradamus to know it was going to happen, he said.There was a bit of angst in the game and it happened last time we played them as well.For our group to be ready for that and stand up for it was enormous.Beveridge said he loved the game by his boy wonder.There is no doubt the Kangaroos, like everyone, think if we stop Marcus Bontempelli we are a chance to stop their midfield, he said.But he is made of pretty special substances, Marcus, and his teammates will always support him.He has just got enormous courage and has enormous character. ' ' '