Welcome back Miller Lite Pigskin Picks

It’s time to call up the gang because me n’ Ellwood are getting the band back together. Greeting sports fans and welcome to another year of mayhem in the Marianas as the National Football League storms back into the Commonwealth like your rowdy cousin coming back from the mainland with a pocket-full of money and suitcase-full of beer.

This year we’ll welcome back some familiar faces as well as some not-so familiar as we search for the CNMI’s top prognosticator for the 2008-09 NFL season in our weekly football feature, Miller Lite Pigskin Picks.

Thanks to the good folks at Pacific Trading Co. we’ll be awarding our weekly winner with a case of Miller Lite for achievements, and the overall winner at the end of the season will receive a little something special for Super Bowl XLIII.

We’ve been away for a while so it’s time for a reintroduction of the usual cast of characters as well as an introduction to this year’s new faces.

Our defending champion is ready to defend his title as big Will Hunter comes to the table with a wealth of knowledge and smile as big as the Marianas Trench. Hunter’s a fan of the power running game so look for a lot of solid picks for Denver.

Rejoining Hunter is a former champion and the man behind the scenes of the Commonwealth Football League, John Blanco. The Wazzu alum was Hunter’s teammate on the line but Blanco would love to take the title away from his friend fair and square.

Sending his picks from across the channel is big Keith Nabors. The walking, talking heartbeat of the Tinian Typhoon brings his love of the game and Tinian pride when making his picks.

Look for some pika commentary from Tinian’s middle linebacker as Nabors bars no holds from the “friendly” competition at hand. You can also count on his instincts when you’re faced with choosing between teams in a tight match-up.

We were even able to bring back one of the past fan favorites as Chris “The Lil Mahi” Barry signed on for the new season. The only thing is that I had to rename the kid from Saipan International School because he’s taller than I am. What are his parents feeding him, anyway?

In light of his runaway growth spurt, I’ve taken it upon myself to graduate Barry to the respected title of “The Big Mahi” for the coming year. Don’t count this kiddo’s age against him because he’s no slouch. The Big Mahi brings a lofty level of statistical data to the table along with his new level of altitude.

Sorry Mahi, but you won’t be able to take home any of the Miller Lite if you win each week. The good news is that you’ll be able to enjoy some Pepsi products as well as some Gatorade until you’re old enough.

One of the newest faces on our list comes from the Great White North, but Glen Smith knows more about American Football than Canadian Maple Syrup. The physical education instructor from Saipan Southern High School is a football fan with a plan of sweeping his way to his first championship.

Smith is known locally more for his exploits on the soccer field than the football field, but he passed the football knowledge placement test with flying colors and we expect great things from him. Plus he bribed us with some poutine to make the cut.

I’ll round out the final spot to see if I can hold my own with these heavyweights. I bring what many call a misguided loyalty for my hometown Buffalo Bills and more than a decade’s worth of experience convincing people of the difficulty of finishing second four years in a row.

I’m not looking for the Bills to win the Super Bowl this year, but anything could happen. Hey, we’ve made four nights in a row without power outages so who knows? [B][I](Brad E. Ruszala)[/I][/B]