I have got to get out of Russell. Not blogging is not good.

No trips to Kansas City. I’ve been spending most of my time writing and in high school gyms.

Last Friday and Saturday were largely spent at Russell High and Middle schools, watching the Amos Morris-George Stephens Classic. Morris was the coach of the Broncos from 1949 through 1966, leading Russell to 301 victories and four state championships. The RHS gymnasium is named after hijm, but he did the majority of his coaching at what is now the middle school. The current RHS building did not open until the fall of 1961, which also happened to be a few months after my dad graduated.

The hometown teams each went 1-1 over the weekend. The Lady Broncos advanced to the tournament championship game Friday by defeating Plainville, but Russell was run over 63-39 by Central Plains of Claflin in the title tilt. Russell’s boys won a consolation game over Lincoln on a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Colten Fritschen, but

I did take some time Sunday to watch the NFL, mind you. Thankfully, the Fox affiliate in Wichita opted not to to show Johnny Manziel’s first game as an NFL starting quarterback. Many Fox stations throughout the country, including those in Lincoln and Topeka, opted to switch from showing Green Bay at Buffalo to Cincinnati at Cleveland.

At first, I feared the Wichita affiliate would do the same, but thakfully, it stuck with Packers-Bills.

Great move. The Bengals bludgeoned the Browns 30-0, holding Cleveland to a meager 107 yards. Manziel was just 10 of 18 for 88 yards.

Meanwhile, Buffalo pulled off a surprise, beating Green Bay 21-13 to knock the Packers temporarily out of first place in the NFC North. The Packers and Detroit are both 10-4, but the Lions won the earlier meeting at home. The teams meet at Lambeau Field on the final Sunday of the season.

The Cardinals clinched a playoff berth late Sunday when the Cowboys-Eagles game didn’t end in a tie. Dallas won 38-27 to take over first place in the NFC East.

Monday Night Football was beyond awful. Saints 31, Bears 15. It should not have been that close.

I wrote all day Tuesday, getting done a little before 4, which gave me enough time to get presentable and drive to Victoria for the Knights’ basketball games vs. TMP-Marian. The Monarchs won the girls varsity game 64-30. The boys game was a thriller, with Bryan Dome’s driving layup with one second left lifting the home team to a 58-56 triumph.

Had to write early Wednesday to get my stuff for the Russell paper done before noon. Missed it, but only by 10 minutes. Nobody was complaining.

Last night I rode with Russell High principal Larry Bernard to the Broncos’ wrestling double dual at Lincoln. There weren’t many contested matches for Russell grapplers vs. Stafford and Lincoln, and I was home before 8.

Getting out of here in a little bit. Going to Norton for basketball and staying the night.