Sports The Lorian Feb. 19, 2015 7

DREWS VIEWS

Drew Brashawasst. sports editor

Remembering SabolProfessional football lost one of its greatest visionaries this month with the passing of NFL Films founder Ed Sabol on Feb. 9. Along with his son, Steve, Ed Sabol created the single most comprehensive video archive in all of American sports. Legendary Chicago Bears founder George Halas once called the Sabol and his company the keepers of the flame.

Even if youve never heard the mans name, I promise youve seen his work.

If youve ever seen a shot of a football spiraling majestically through the air in slow motion against a backdrop of the crisp autumn sky, it was Sabol. If youve ever seen a close-up of bloody fingers dug in to the frozen December dirt, or muddy cleats flinging clods of the shredded earth toward the heavens, it was Sabol. If youve ever seen a film about twenty-two gargantuan brutes destroying one another in a childs game, and thought to yourself, Thats beautiful, it was Sabol.

Sabol knew football was the perfect movie waiting to be made. It had action, drama, conflict, intrigue, pageantry, comedy, larger-than-life characters and captivating new scripts being written every Sunday afternoon. All it needed was a directors vision. Ed Sabol could see it all, and he showed us how we could see it, too.

Nearly every indelible, artful image of the NFLs past five decades is born from Sabols vision. He brought romance to professional football. More than simply a documentation of record, NFL Films is responsible for creating pro footballs rich mythology.

When Joe Montana found Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone to win the 1982 NFC championship game, it was a great play in a big game. But when Ed Sabol and NFL Films got a hold of it, it became an immortal moment in pro football lore, and a simple six-yard Sprint Right Option play became a masterful work of art. Montanas pump-fake on Too-Tall Jones, the ball hanging in the air for what seemed like an eternity, Clarks outstretched hands coming out of nowhere; all captured perfectly in stunning, suspenseful slow motion. Clark may have been the one who caught the ball, but it was Sabol who made The Catch.

As a very young boy, I didnt understand the sport well enough (nor did I have the attention span) to watch all three hours of a football game on television. There would be a break in the action, and my mind (and feet) would wander off while the players were milling around on the field between snaps. But I could watch NFL Films for hours. All of the exciting moments of a football game that did hold my attention were made more magnificent through Sabols lens. Even the banal, mundane moments that sent my mind drifting away during a game looked beautiful on NFL Films.

Sabol saw the poetry in every moment of a football game. In fact, Hamlin Garlands Do You Fear the Wind? has been one of my favorite poems since I first heard it recited in an NFL Film as a lad. To this day, I cannot read the poem without hearing John Facendas thunderous voice and conjuring images of the warriors of the 60s and 70s doing battle against one another and the elements. Its so violent, so masculine; so beautiful.

Ed Sabol not only carved out his own impressive legacy NFL Films hauled in 52 Emmy Awards under his watch (that number has more than doubled in the years since), and he was inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011. He shaped the legacies of many of the games most beloved personalities. Lombardi. A certain magic still lingers in the very name. It speaks of duels in the snow and November mud Think about Vince Lombardi for a minute; Id wager most of the images that come to your mind were put there by Ed Sabol. A seal here, and a seal hereGrab! Grab! Grab!...What the hells goin on out there?; these moments are iconic in the legend of Lombardi, and they were all captured and committed to mythology by Sabols crews.

Would Lynn Swann be a hall-of-famer without NFL Films graceful presentation of his leaping, juggling catches? Would we know Hank Stram had the vocabulary of an English professor if Ed Sabol had never put a mic on him on the sideline? Would Dallas fans be calling the Cowboys Americas Team if their 1978 season highlight film didnt bear the same name? Fortunately for football fans, these questions neednt be raised. Ed Sabol put Swann in Canton, and he put the words Matriculating the ball down the field into football lexicon. He not only made The Cowboys Americas Team, he made football Americas game.

Loras swimmers dry off for last timeDuhawks set 13 school records en route to a pair of 5th place finishes at the Liberal Arts Championships

by DUSTIN DAWSON | sportswriterThough unable to advance to Nation-

als, the Duhawk swim teams did their best to end their season with a bang at the Liberal Arts/IIAC Championships. The event started last Thursday, and it didnt take long for the Duhawks to get things rolling.

Over the course of the day, six school records were broken. Sophomore Ike Casey broke his own record in the mens 50 freestyle with a time of 21:15. Then, junior Zach Benson joined Casey by breaking his own record as well in the Mens 200 Individual Medley, with a time of 155.69.

The next record broken, the mens 200 Free Relay, had stood since 2012. Casey and Benson were joined by se-niors Grant Duncan and Matt DeWane to set the mark at 1:25.33. The success of the first day for the men was evident, but the women were not to be outdone.

The womens 200 Individual Med-ley school record also fell. Senior Lexie Mollahan was able to conquer a 14-year-old record with a time of

2:10.90. Mollahan was not done, as she and her teammates seniors Mary Kathryn Maher, Clare Ehlbeck, and first-year Kim Breaux broke the 400 Medley relay with a time of 4:03.33. Also during that race, Maher claimed her own school record with a time of 1:01.52 in the backstroke split.

On Friday, five more school re-cords were broken. Those included the womens 200 Medley Relay, womens 200 Free, womens 800 Freestyle Re-lay, womens 100 Backstroke, and the mens 50 Free.

The Duhawks still had a little left in the tank on Saturday, as four more school records were eclipsed on the fi-nal day.

During her final collegiate event, Maher bested her own record in the womens 200 Backstroke with a time of 2:11.54. Ehlbeck was able to get past a six year standing record in the wom-ans 200 Breaststroke with a time of 2:30.03. The mens 200 Breaststroke school record which was set in 2000, was the longest standing in school his-tory. Benson had no problem making that record his own, finishing with a time of 2:10.91. Finally, Casey was able to cap off, not only a great meet, but a great season by setting the record at 46:05 in the mens 100 Free.

Everyone dropped in time this meet and setting 13 school records was great, said Casey.

Last weekends meet marked the last for eight Duhawk swimmers.

Its bittersweet, said Duncan. Sweet in knowing that swimming is over and I can get my free time back, but itll hit me soon that I wont be see-ing the friends I have made while swim-ming for Loras.

Track & field teams gain ground at UW-Platteville invite

Duhawks setting personal records as Iowa Conference Indoor Championships approach

by MATTHEW MARTER | sportswriterThe Duhawks won a total of nine

events at the UW-Platteville Invite this weekend and saw many athletes set per-sonal records. Despite fighting the cold weather and being forced off the snowy track, the Duhawks continue to push forward as the Iowa Conference indoor championship gets closer.

On the track from the mens side, ju-nior Zach Frey took home another win in the 800-meter run. He ran a time of 1:55.28. This beat his old indoor record of 1:55.57, which was set at a Nationals qualifying meet last year. Although he has won quite a few 800-meter runs this season, he stressed the insignifi-cance of the wins.

The important thing is that Im healthy right now, said Frey. I feel that when the big race comes at confer-ence, last chance, or hopefully Na-tionals, I will be ready to go with the big dogs.

The other individual victory on the mens side comes from first-year Timothy Sevcik. He beat out the runner-up by 0.15 seconds, clocking in with a time of 8:57.13.

I feel pretty great about break-ing nine minutes, said Sevcik. Its still pretty early in the season and Ive been dealing with some injury and low mileage, but Im

still dropping time well.The mens 4x400-meter relay also

won at the meet this weekend, finishing with a time of 3:25.63. The relay con-sisted of junior Stedman Foster, soph-omore Brandon Gradoville, senior Zac Gassman, and Frey.

On the track from the womens side, junior Bri Cook placed fourth in the 3,000-meter run. In doing so, she not only ran a personal record of 10:58.04, but she also beat out the fifth place runner by 0.95 seconds. This marks the first time that she has broken the 11 minute mark in the 3,000-meter run.

The womens 4x400-meter relay took home the win as well with a time of 4:05.42. The runners on this relay were sophomore Alexis Hanson, first-years Sarah Schoel and Emily Ney, and junior Britnee Powers.

Sophomore Elizabeth Brandenburg stood out in her two events as well. On the track, she won the 60-meter hurdles with a final time of 9.15 seconds and won the pole vault with a height of 3.56 meters. This ties her collegiate personal

record.Continuing on the field event side for

the women, senior Morgan Steere won both the shot put and weight throw. Her marks of 12.65 meters in the shot put and 16.38 meters in the weight throw are her best results this season. The Duhawks recently hired a new throws coach Rebecca Stier, and Morgan cites her as a source of her continuing suc-cess.

[Coach Stier] is great at picking out the little things that we need to fix, said Steere. Shes just really great at making you feel confident about your abilities and that is half the battle.

Each week, the coaches designate an athlete or two on the track and the field from both the mens and the womens side. This weeks Perform-ers of the Meet included Sevcik, as the mens track performer for a win in the 3,000-meter run. Junior Devan Kennedy took the field performer hon-ors for a significant personal record improvement in the Long Jump with a distance of 6.23 meters. Steere took

the womens field performer for her wins in the weight throw and shot put. Schoel was the womens track performer for her personal record and fourth place finish in the 800-meter run, as well as her legs on the 4x200-meter relay and the winning 4x400-relay.

The Duhawks compete again this Friday, Feb. 20, at the Univer-sity of Dubuque to close out the in-door season before the conference championship.

Duhawks break 13 school records at Liberal Arts/IIAC Championships

Men

Event .......................Swimmer Time50 free ............................ Ike Casey 20.91100 free ........................... Ike Casey 46.05200 IM .......................Zach Benson 1:55.69200 breast ..................Zach Benson 2:10.91200 free .....................Benson, Casey, 1:25.33relay DeWane, Duncan

Women

Event .......................Swimmer Time200 IM ...................Lexie Mollahan 2:10.90200 free ..................Lexie Mollahan 1:56.60100 back ............. Mary Kate Maher 1:00.46200 back ............ Mary Kate Maher 2:11.54200 breast ................ Clare Ehlbeck 2:30.03400 medley ............ Maher, Ehlbeck, 4:03.33relay Breaux, Mollahan200 medley ............ Maher, Ehlbeck, 1:53.38relay Beach, Breaux800 free ................ Mollahan, Maher, 8:03.74relay Black, Breaux

Setting the record straight...

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to put in.

[Coach Stier] is great at picking out the little things that we need to

fix. Shes just really great at making you feel confident about your

abilities and that is half the battle.Morgan Steere,

senior thrower,,