Here is something that I think the UCONN Huskies should do to attract football fans to games.

Here are three examples that other schools use.

LSU’s Golden Girls

The Alabama Crimsonettes

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Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR’s most popular driver, started with the rebranding of his corporate image by announcing his new number and his new sponsor.

Earnhardt officially ditched his long time sponsor Budweiser Wednesday by announcing new sponsorship deals. Mountain Dew’s Amp energy drink, a Pepsi product, and the National Guard will adorn Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevrolet. The new sponsors mark a shift away from Earnhardt’s party boy image to one of corporate pitchman.

When it was announced that Budweiser would not be following Earnhardt from DEI to Hendick Motorsports, corporations started to ring Rick Hendrick’s phone off the wall. But Hendrick never looked outside of his existing sponsors and began working out new deals with Pepsi and the Guard.

Those new sponsors will adorn a new car number for Earnhardt, who has driven the No. 8 car since breaking into NASCAR in 2000. Dale Jr. wanted to take the No. 8 with him from DEI but his stepmother Theresa Earnhardt refused to give up her rights to it. So now he really gets to keep it in the family as he will drive the No. 88 car once driven by his grandfather Ralph Earnhardt.

HMS got the 88 from Robert Yates Racing who asked NASCAR to transfer the number to Hendrick.

“Ralph Earnhardt drove the No. 88 Olds in 1957 and because of this number’s history with the Earnhardt family, I felt car No. 88 should continue with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.,” Robert Yates said in a statement.

In addition to the new sponsors, Earnhardt recently signed personal services contracts with Adidas and Sony and on Tuesday he unveiled a personally designed candybar.

Earnhardt’s down to earth personality attracts sponsors and the fact that he is a regular Mountain Dew drinker made for the perfect fit.

“People understand what our model has been since we’ve started, that we’d be ourselves,” Earnhardt said. “You’ve had a chance to get to know me and you know how I do things. They knew coming in that I like being myself, and being honest and telling the truth.”The truth is hard to hide from, so it’s easier just to tell it and be honest with your fans and be honest with yourself. I think that they’re comfortable with that, and I’ll be comfortable already working with them.”

Forget October, let’s hope the Sox get out of September. Russ Adams’ grand slam off of closer Jonathan Papelbon gave the Blue Jays some insurance as they went on to defeat the Red Sox 6-1 and sweep the three-game set. The loss coupled with yet another Yankees win puts the lead at just 1.5 games in the AL East. If there was good news out of today, the Tigers lost so the Sox magic number to reach the playoffs is just 3 games.

Clay Buchholz got the start tonight for the Red Sox and pitched well. So did his counterpart Jesse Litsch. Both pitchers actually had no-hitters thru the first 3 innings.

Clay’s no hitter lasted until there was two outs in the 4th inning when Frank Thomas hit a single. It didn’t affect Buchholz as he struck out Aaron Hill to end the inning.

Litsch lost his no-hitter to the first batter he faced in the 5th inning. J.D. Drew led off with a solo home run, just his 9th of the year, to give the Sox a 1-0 lead. Litsch then got Jason Varitek and Eric Hinske to ground out. He then walked Bobby Kielty but got Julio Lugo to fly out for the final out of the inning.

Gregg Zaun led off the 5th inning with a double and went to third on an Adam Lind single. Zaun tied the game up when Adams reached on a bunt single. Ray Olmedo then hit a ball back to Buchholz who threw the ball past Lowell that went into the outfield allowing Lind to score. After Kielty threw the ball back in, Mike Lowell held onto it for a few and when Adams adjusted his feet, Lowell tagged for an out. Buchholz then walked Vernon Wells but and then ended his night striking out Matt Stairs. Having seen Buchholz throw 70 pitches on the night, Terry Francona went to the bullpen for Manny Delcarmen. Facing Alex Rios, Delcarmen got him to fly out as the Sox left the inning trailing 2-1.

The Sox had a great chance to tie the game up in the 7th inning. Litsch had gotten the first two outs of the inning before he ran into some trouble. He issued a free pass to Varitek and Hinske followed that with a single. Litsch then hit Kielty with a pitch to load up the bases for Lugo. Litsch wouldn’t face Lugo though as Jays manager John Gibbons went to his bullpen for Casey Janssen. He came in and jammed Lugo, who hit the ball to Olmedo at short. The ball took a funny hop on Olmedo who threw to first to get Lugo who didn’t run hard down the line. Had Lugo ran all the way, the game would be tied. But that wasn’t the case.

Mike Timlin started the 8th for the Sox and started it off by hitting Rios with a pitch. After Rios stole second, Timlin walked Frank Thomas. Curtis Thigpen came into run for the speedy Thomas. Hill then laid down a nice bunt to move the runners over to second and third. The Sox then decided to intentionally walk Zaun to face Adams. Francona went for his ace in the bullpen, Papelbon. He fell behind Adams 3-0 but battled back to make it a full count. On a fastball, Adams planted it in the seats for a grand slam and a 6-1 Jays lead. Papelbon ended the inning with a strikeout of Olmedo.

Jeremy Accardo, who came on to finish the 8th, struck out the first two batters of the 9th. He ended the game as he got Hinske to foul out to third to send the Sox reeling even deeper.

Is anyone else glad the Red Sox are off tomorrow? I sure am. I am so frustrated right now. Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe has asked us to stay away from the ledge.

Just stay away from ledges, people. For me?

Only because she asked so nicely. Lucky for me (I think), I live on the first floor.

Boston—September 19, 2007—Kevin Youkilis, first baseman for the Boston Red Sox, today announced the creation of Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids, a private, nonprofit 501 (c) (3) charitable organization. Hits for Kids will raise support and awareness for community-based childrens’ charities and medical research organizations. Also today, the organization launched its website, www.youkskids.org.

“Hits for Kids is committed to making a big difference for smaller organizations doing extraordinary work for children in need,” said Youkilis. “I believe that people will be excited to learn about these groups and eager to help out. Baseball fans are passionate, caring and generous people. We look forward to making a long-term difference in the lives of many children.”

Most donations are made primarily to a small group of large charities. Statistics show that nearly 80 percent of registered non-profits are small organizations reporting annual revenues less than $500,000; yet together these organizations receive less than three percent of all charitable gifts. These groups often struggle to raise sufficient funding. Hits for Kids will help support and fund some of these small and mid-size organizations.

Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids, a Charitable Organization, will host a variety of events in order to raise funds and awareness, ranging from a large gala to more casual affairs involving children and their families. Corporate and individual contributions will also be accepted at the donor’s discretion.

Some of the organizations that Hits for Kids will initially work with include:

• Christopher’s Haven – a home for kids when cancer hits home, provides housing for children going through state-of -the-art Proton Beam cancer treatment at Mass General Hospital. Christopher’s Haven provides a safe, comfortable and supportive environment for the young patients as well as their parents and siblings.
• Italian Home for Children – “the home of last resort” for the most severely abused, neglected, and emotionally disturbed children. IHC offers these boys and girls a safe haven and a chance to put the pieces of their lives back together.
• Joslin Diabetes Center’s Pediatric Health Services – a team that cares for more than half of the kids and teens in Massachusetts with by diabetes. Joslin’s personalized approach to care, education and support helps keep kids with diabetes and their families live a healthy life with diabetes.

A native of Cincinnati, Kevin Youkilis was drafted by the Red Sox in the eighth round of the 2001 draft. He was the Red Sox Minor League Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002, and named to the International League All Star team in 2003. Youkilis made an auspicious major league debut on May 15, 2004 when he smashed a home run in a 4-0 win over Toronto against Cy-Young award winning pitcher Pat Hentgen. He appeared in 72 games for the World Series champions that year and was named the club’s Rookie of the Year by the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. A native of Cincinnati, Youkilis was a two-time All-American at the University of Cincinnati and a member of the Sycamore High School team that won the AAU National Championship in 1994.

About Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids
Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids is a charitable organization focused on raising support and awareness for the health, advocacy, safety, and medical healing of children across Massachusetts and beyond. With the goal of rallying the support of volunteers, local business, and the heart of Red Sox Nation, Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids is teaming with existing, community-based children’s’ charities and medical research efforts that currently lack sufficient funding and awareness.

To learn more about Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids, or to make a donation, please visit www.youkskids.org.

I was little fired up about last night’s loss if you hadn’t noticed. Jon Lester struggled in the first inning but settled down after that and gave the Red Sox 6 2/3 great innings. When Eric Gagné came in for the 8th, I thought to myself, “here we go again”. I know I shouldn’t think like that but when he’s come into a situation like this and blown it, what are we supposed to think. After he got the first two outs, I figured ok, get this third out and we will see Jonathan Papelbon in the 9th. Then the implosion came and all the sudden the Sox were down 4-2. Julio Lugo homered in the 9th but that was all the Sox could muster as they lost 4-3. The Sox rest their hopes for a win on Clay Buchholz tonight but before he does, let’s take a look at the headlines from the Boston area and Toronto media on a chilly morning along the shores of the Long Island Sound.

Gagné at a loss for words [Boston Globe]

Blue Jays spoil Gagne’s homecoming [The Globe and Mail]

Reliever blows lead, Sox only up 2 1/2 in East [Boston Herald]

Gagne’s gaffe saves day for Jays [Toronto Star]

Gagne Gives It Up [Hartford Courant]

Burnett gets his reward [Toronto Sun]

Red Sox’ pitching not up to pennant-winning task [Pro Jo]

Another one slips away[Boston Globe]

Jays wallowing in mediocrity [Toronto Sun]

Manny Runs Into More Problems [Hartford Courant]

Big Papi’s knee causes pain again [Boston Herald]

Gagne implodes; Red Sox lose third straight [Pro Jo]

Red Sox playing out the string with sights on playoffs [Toronto Star]

Without Ramirez, muscle still missing from lineup [Boston Globe]

Francona shuffles pitching to prepare for the playoffs [Pro Jo]

For more headlines and stories, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Providence Journal, Hartford Courant, the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, and Toronto Sun websites.