Thursday, February 19, 2009

Former New York Giant and Michigan State great Brad Van Pelt dies

The article below was taken from the New York Daily News...

By Hank Gola and Gary Myers
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITERS

Giants great Brad Van Pelt is dead of an apparent heart attack at age 57.

He was found in his chair by his fiancée Tuesday at the house they recently purchased together in his hometown of Owosso, Michigan, according to former teammates Harry Carson and Brian Kelley.

Together with Lawrence Taylor, they formed the unit known as the Crunch Bunch, considered one of the top linebacking corps in Giants history, from 1981 to '83. They have remained close ever since, doing everything from golf outings to charity work together.

"I'm saddened," Carson told the Daily News. "I lost a teammate and my very good friend, He went much too soon at 57."

"Un-frigging-believable," Kelley told the Daily News. "He didn't deserve this. He was just a good person, such a great guy who would give you the shirt off his back. He wasn't material, he didn't own a lot of things. My wife nailed it when she said he had the Peter Pan Syndrome. He just never wanted to grow up."

"Deanna (his fiancée) walked into the house. He was sitting up in the chair smiling but he wasn't moving," Kelley said. "She called 911 but he'd been gone for a couple of hours. I called her this morning. She said he was smiling so obviously he went peacefully."

Kelley said he called Taylor with news Tuesday night and all L.T, could say was, "No, no, no."

Van Pelt was the Giants' first draft pick out of Michigan State in 1973 and spent the first 11 years of a 14-year NFL career with them.

Although he enjoyed just one winning season as a Giant, when the team reached the playoffs in 1981, he was voted the team's Player of the Decade for the 1970s and was a five-time Pro Bowl selection. After leaving the Giants, he played two years for the Raiders before ending his career with Cleveland in 1986.

Van Pelt, who also starred in baseball and played basketball at Michigan State, was a two-time All American safety and the 1972 winner of the Maxwell Award as the nation's best player. He was inducted into the College Hall of Fame in 2001 and nominated for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005.

Van Pelt's son, Bradlee, was a backup quarterback for the Broncos and Texans and just two weeks ago, was given a tryout as a safety by the Giants. His father, Arnold, passed away from a heart attack at age 49 in 1976.

JLH showing off her elbow

Here is the Thursday photo shot of JLH who turns 30 on Saturday...

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

JLH looking fine

Here is our daily shot of JLH who turns 30 on Saturday...

Beanie going to the Browns?

Here is the latest mock NFL draft by NFLdraftscout.com...

1. Lions - Matthew Stafford, qb, Georgia
2. Rams - Michael Oher, ot, Ole Miss
3. Chiefs - Everette Brown, de, Florida State
4. Seahawks - Malcolm Jenkins, cb, Ohio State
5. Browns - Chris Wells, rb, Ohio State
6. Bengals - Eugene Monroe, ot, Virginia
7. Raiders - Michael Crabtree, we, Texas Tech
8. Jaguars - Jason Smith, ot, Baylor
9. Packers - Aaron Curry, olb, Wake Forest
10. 49ers - Andre Smith, ot, Alabama

11. Bills - Brian Orakpo, de, Texas
12. Broncos - Rey Maualuga, ilb, USC
13. Redskins - Brian Cushing, olb, USC
14. Saints - Vontae Davis, cb, Illinois
15. Texans - B.J. Raji, dt, Boston College
16. Chargers - Knowshon Moreno, rb, Georgia
17. Jets - Jeremy Maclin, wr, Missouri
18. Bears - Mark Sanchez, qb, USC
19. Buccaneers - Peria Jerry, dt, Ole Miss
20. Lions - James Laurinaitis, ilb, Ohio State

21. Eagles - Brandon Pettigrew, te, Oklahoma State
22. Vikings - Josh Freeman, qb, Kansas State
23. Patriots - Aaron Maybin, olb, Penn State
24. Falcons - Tyson Jackson, de, LSU
25. Dolphins - D.J. Moore, cb, Vanderbilt
26. Ravens - Clay Matthews Jr., olb, USC
27. Colts - Percy Harvin, wr, Florida
28. Eagles - Eben Britton, ot, Arizona
29. Giants - Hakeem Nicks, wr, North Carolins
30. Titans - Robert Ayers, de, Tennessee

31. Cardinals - LeSean McCoy, rb, Pitt
32. Steelers - Alex Mack, c, Cal

Monday, February 16, 2009

JLH - turns 30 this week

This Saturday, February 21st, my girl Jennifer Love Hewitt is turning the BIG THREE OH...to honor her, each day this week Stiles Points will post a photos of JLH...heck, I just turned 40-years-old last month, so 10 years is not a big difference in age - I'm just saying...cuz you know she just broke up with her fiancee...

Asa Buchanan (Phil Carey) and Clint Buchanan (Clint Ritchie) dead

Over the weekend I was catching up on my newspapers when I came across the death notice of Phil Carey...the name will not ring a bell to most, but the name of the character he played sure will - Asa Buchanan (seated in photo)...

Carey played Asa Buchanan, the big Texas billionaire, on the soap opera One Life to Live from 1979 to 2008...Carey was 83-years-old and died of lung cancer on February 6, 2009 in New York...

Interestingly, while researching Carey's death, I came across the death notice of another former One Life to Live star - Clint Ritchie...Ritche played the role of Clint Buchanan (standing, right) , Asa's oldest son on the soap opera...

Ritchie, who died January 31, 2008, was 70-years-old and died in Roseville, California after a brief illness...


The following is a 3:02 honoring Phil Carey with clips from his last appearance on One Life to Live on December 29, 2008...