You’re a Raiders fan, and you wonder what else can happen. The team finally gets out of its decade-deep hole, one that’s silver as much as black, and the owner wants to sneak it over the border.
It has a quarterback worthy of the chant, “MVP, MVP,” and not only does he get hurt, a broken leg no less, but so does his backup.
So you wait, tentatively, philosophically, perhaps angrily, cursing fate, hoping the unproven kid at QB, Connor Cook, can make history and more importantly the defense, which was awful against Denver in the final regular season game, can make a few tackles.
Finally, after years and years — and years — the playoffs. The colleges around here are done. The other pro team, the 49ers, has been done since it started. In effect, the Raiders — “tha Raidahs” — are the only football team going in the entire great state of California. Whether they’re eventually also going to Vegas is the subject for another day.
Cook, as you know, is the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era, or since 1967, to make his first career start in a postseason game. He’s a rookie, selected in the fourth round of last spring’s draft with only a teaspoonful of experience.
He isn’t yet Ben Roethlisberger. Or Tom Brady. Or Derek Carr. Never may be. But a good quarterback is a leader as much as a passer, someone who inspires confidence and doesn’t panic.
As a sophomore, Cook helped win a Rose Bowl Game for Michigan State over Stanford on New Year’s Day 2014 and was named MVP, throwing for 332 yards. Two seasons later, the Spartans made it to the College Football Playoffs and lost in the semis to Alabama, 38-0. Cook was only 19 of 39, was sacked four times and threw two interceptions.
But only one pro game, last weekend, and that as an emergency backup. “I thought the poise was there,” Del Rio insisted. “The moment didn’t look too big for him.”
This moment, this first postseason game for the Raiders since January 2003, Super Bowl XXXVII, seems too big for the Raiders, what with a guy off the bench as the man in charge.
The usual company line is that it’s about teams, not necessarily individuals, even though we are aware a team is composed of individuals.
“Look,” said Del Rio, “it’s about our team going against their team. At the end of the day you can talk about one position over another and totally understand that quarterbacks get a lot of attention. But it will be the Oakland Raiders against the Houston Texans. We’ll be excited to see how the game goes.”
So will Raider fans. They’re properly distressed Carr or even Matt McGloin won’t be at center. They’re worried about what happened to the defense. And please don’t even bring up Las Vegas, even as an entertainment site.
“We just need to go out and play,” was Del Rio’s comment.
They’ll play, but how well?

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NEW YORK, Jan. 5 (UPI) — One of the world’s most recognizable athletes needed just a ski cap and shades to fool Lyft passengers recently.
New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. kept his bleached out hairstyle under wraps this week when he pretended to be a Lyft driver.
Other athletes including: Jerry Rice , Shaquille O’Neal , Rob Gronkowski , and David Ortiz have also tried to trick passengers with the stunt.
On Beckham’s run, he repeatedly dropped hints about his alter ego before finally revealing his true identity to the Giants fans.
Beckham introduced himself as “JR,” telling passengers he has driven for the service for three years in New York.
He then asks the passengers which players they like on the Giants.
“I don’t got too much bad to say about, what’s his name? Beckham Jr.,” Beckham said. “I don’t know how I feel about him always dancing all of the time. ”
He even asks passengers if they have ever been to Houston, where the Super Bowl will be played next month.
“I’m trying to get there in February,” Beckham said.
Beckham finished the prank off by giving the fans selfies and autographed footballs.
The three-time Pro Bowl selection had 1,367 yards and 10 touchdowns on 101 receptions this season.
The Giants battle the Green Bay Packers at 4:40 p.m. Sunday in an NFC Wild Card round showdown at Lambeau Field.

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DAVIE, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins dispensed with any pretense of suspense regarding their quarterback situation.
Ryan Tannehill was ruled out of Sunday’s playoff game at Pittsburgh, and backup Matt Moore will start for the fourth straight week. The Dolphins announced the decision Thursday after determining Tannehill still isn’t ready to practice because of a sprained left knee.
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“It felt like it was the right thing to do,” Coach Adam Gase said, “just so we can move on in this week and not play, ‘What are we going to do?’ and focus on what we’re doing right now with Matt.”
Moore, a 10th-year pro, is 2-1 as Tannehill’s replacement and will make his first career postseason start.
“He knows he’s our relief pitcher,” offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen said. “We try to make the decision early in the week because it’s hard to get two guys prepared. He assumed he was doing it. He has continued to prepare as a starter.”
If the Dolphins win Sunday, Tannehill could return for their second-round game Jan. 14 at New England.
Such a scenario is the reason Miami hasn’t put him on injured reserve.
Gase said he believes Tannehill is close to returning to practice.
“We’ve got to keep talking to him, and he needs to keep letting us know where he’s at and how he feels,” Gase said. “We try to do different drills with him and just try to figure out what he can articulate to us.”
The Dolphins are 2-1 with Moore starting. He has eight touchdown passes, three interceptions and a quarterback rating of 105.6, which is higher than Tannehill’s career-best 93.5 this year.
“He’s been in the league for more time than Tannehill so he’s got more experience,” Steelers cornerback Ross Cockrell said. “For us on the back end, whether it’s Matt Moore, whether it’s Tannehill, it doesn’t make a difference for our preparation. Our job is still to stop the run, create turnovers and put pressure on the quarterback.”
The general manager is up to the task, but he knows winning the AFC East won’t be easy. Not with Tom Brady still going strong at 39 for the New England Patriots.
“In my phone, I think I have Tom’s birthday logged in there,” Maccagnan said Thursday. “So every time his birthday comes up, I know he’s getting one year older.
“I’m just joking.”
But New England has won eight straight AFC East titles and 14 of the last 15. Brady said last season that he wants to play 10 more years, so that’s bad news for Maccagnan and the Jets.
“I have to find a new voodoo doll, I guess,” Maccagnan said, smiling.
The Jets struggled to a 5-11 season that put both Maccagnan and Coach Todd Bowles on the hot seat. They were within a win of the playoffs last year before falling short. One way to the postseason and ending a six-season drought would be knocking off Brady’s bunch.
“It’s not unattainable,” Maccagnan insisted, but the gap between New York and New England seems a lot larger than ever before.
“You can’t sit there and look how high the climb is,” Maccagnan said. “You just have to keep focusing on trying to make decisions that you feel will keep moving the team to the vision of where you want it. Unfortunately it just takes time.”
The team owner is preaching patience, though, and to trust in the process.
“I understand their anger,” Johnson said Thursday. “You’ve just got to be confident in what we’re trying to do.”
That would be sustained winning and making the postseason, something the Jets haven’t done in six years.
It’s the longest drought in Johnson’s tenure since he took over the team in 2000, and the worst for the franchise since the 1992-97 seasons.
“Everyone’s entitled to their opinion,” Zenner said. “It sounded like he said some pretty nice stuff, so I’m appreciative of that.”
The undrafted, second-year pro from South Dakota State has emerged as a No. 1 running back for the Lions entering their NFC wild-card game Saturday night on the road against the Seahawks.
“There’s not many white running backs in the NFL but he has to be the best right now,” said Bennett, a standout defensive end for Seattle. “He’s doing such a great job of cutbacks and hitting the hole. He’s a really good back.”
It’s the third time this season Gregory has been suspended. The first was a four-game ban, followed by 10 games on top of that. The latest suspension makes him ineligible for the playoffs that start Jan. 15 for Dallas, the top seed in the NFC.
The suspension is for one calendar year, meaning he could be eligible for the playoffs without another violation if the Cowboys make it again next season.
Barry spent the past two seasons as the Washington defensive coordinator, and it ranked 28th in the NFL in each of them.
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Coaching the Portland High girls’ basketball team – or any high school team – was probably the last thing Gerry Corcoran thought he would be doing in 2017.
Yet here he is, again standing on the sidelines and coaching the game he loves.
Corcoran became the Portland High girls’ coach on Dec. 27, just days after Jay Lowery resigned unexpectedly on Dec. 23. Lowery was in his third year as the Bulldogs’ coach and the team was off to an 0-5 start after winning only two games last season.
Athletic Director Rob O’Leary is simply glad that Corcoran – who played at Northeastern University, then professionally in Europe and South America before embarking on a winding coaching odyssey – was around and willing to take the position.
“He knows the game of basketball, that’s for sure,” said O’Leary. “I love that we have someone like that with us. It was a blessing that he was around.”
The 53-year-old Corcoran, a native of Hingham, Massachusetts, and his family moved to Maine in 2011 and have lived in South Portland since 2013. He’s pleased with the progress even though the Bulldogs have lost three more games.
“The girls are making me a better coach already,” said Corcoran. “We’re going to have some fun.”
He started his coaching career as an assistant at Connecticut under Jim Calhoun, whom he played for at Northeastern, then coached at several high schools and colleges in Massachusetts over the years. In 2007 he coached the Cape Cod Frenzy of the professional American Basketball Association for 10 games (also taking over midway through the season). When that team moved, he decided to turn his attention to his young and growing family.
So coaching took a back seat to other jobs. He had been a counselor at a correctional facility in Dedham, Massachusetts, speaking to inmates about drug and alcohol abuse. He now works at Opportunity Alliance, an community outreach program based in South Portland.
The past few years, Corcoran coached some youth AAU basketball teams but didn’t coach in the winter so he could watch his son, Connor, play hockey.
He had been introduced to O’Leary – like Corcoran, from Massachusetts – and the two met in December to discuss Portland’s struggling girls’ team. A couple of days later, Lowery asked if Corcoran would attend a practice. He did and began making plans to help some more.
“I don’t know what happened,” Corcoran said. “I got a call that Jay had resigned and they asked if I wanted to coach.”
Corcoran needed to make sure he could fit coaching full-time back into his life. Once he did, he was ready to go. He was finally approved for the position just hours before his first game, a 50-37 loss to Sanford.
Although the Bulldogs remain winless, Corcoran sees improvements. “Their learning curve is amazing,” he said of the players.
As a disciple of Calhoun, Corcoran is a proponent of multiple defenses – “kill them with confusion,” he said – and a fast-paced offense. He said the Bulldogs eventually will run set plays but “the best offense is that you go and don’t let the defense get its feet set. I want the girls to have some fun and score.”
He’s been especially impressed with senior guard Taylor Sargent, senior forward Kate Johnson, junior forward Shayla Eubanks and sophomore point guard Nettie Walsh.
This is the first time he’s coached a girls’ team.
“I’ve always loved the girls’ game and I’ve always known this,” he said. “There’s a purity to the game. It’s not played above the rim. It’s about fundamentals and shooting.”
The Red Eddies showed why just before Christmas when they beat all three Portland teams in succession: winning at Deering 62-54, topping Cheverus 71-51, then shooting down defending champ Portland, 76-70.
Edward Little is 7-0. A year ago it started the season 1-6.
“We’re good. No question about it and we’re good because they’ve worked really hard,” said Coach Mike Adams, now in his 16th year. “But we also know it’s just (through) Game 7 for us. We have to keep getting better. Those teams, they’re superior to us athletically.”
Edward Little returns Jarod Norcross- Plourde, a senior guard who averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds last season. This year more players are contributing. Darby Shea (six first-half 3s against Portland), guard Samatar Iman, and sophomore 6-foot-4 forward Wol Maiwen, the first man off the bench, have provided consistent scoring. Junior point guard Tyler Morin is a returning starter, and senior C. J. Jipson adds energy, defense and superior passing. With improved balance and experience, Edward Little has shown it can play multiple styles successfully.
The Eddies have two games left against teams currently with winning records (at Windham and at Oxford Hills). Going 18-0 is a real possibility. Adams said he’s heard and read others proclaiming his team as the best in the state. Now it’s his turn to offer a word or two of caution.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone who knows better than Edward Little how hard it is to win a state championship,” Adams said.
Edward Little’s last state title came in 1946. Adams coached his team to consecutive regional championships in 2009 and ’10 but lost in both state finals: to Thornton Academy 54-52, and then Cheverus, 55-50. Cheverus was stripped of its 2010 title 31 months later for using an ineligible player.
“The boys deserve the recognition for what they’ve done so far but we know we have to keep improving,” Adams said.
After Tuesday’s 46-40 loss to unbeaten Scarborough, Coach Lynne Hasson said the team has to play with more intensity. The score was 26-26 entering the fourth quarter.
“I guess we have to go back to the drawing board,” she said. “I talked to the kids about the fact that everyone might think we have one of the top teams around but we really have got to do it on the floor. It doesn’t matter what your reputation is or what your uniform says, you’ve got to come to play every night. There’s a lot of teams in this league that are competitive and if you don’t come to play, you’re going to be in trouble.”
Certainly she gave Scarborough plenty of credit for the victory.
“I figured they’d be a good team all along,” she said. “They’ve got some good players and they’re competitive.”
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Andre Walker had 23 points and scored the game winning 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds to cap Thursday night’s 18-point second-half comeback for Loyola of Maryland over Lehigh 84-83.
The Greyhounds (8-6, 2-1 Patriot League) never led until Walker dribbled to top of the key with about five seconds left, freed himself with a double shot-fake, and drained the 3 with too little time for the Mountain Hawks (7-7, 1-2) to respond.
Jarred Jones led Loyola with 24 points; Andrew Kostecka added 15 points and Cam Gregory scored 13. The Greyhounds won their fourth of the last five.
Lehigh dominated the first half for a 46-34 lead at the break and pushed ahead 60-42 on Brandon Alston’s 3-pointer with 13:52 left. Loyola cut the gap to 62-55 before the 10-minute mark and overcame an 80-70 deficit in the final 2:54.
Austin Price had 23 points, Tim Kempton had 18 points and 11 boards, and Kahron Ross had 15 points and nine assists for Lehigh.

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