4 Things the Jaguars Can Do To Help the Team from Joey Marchy on Vimeo.
Today Bonnie Upright, who happened to get totally annihalated in our fantasy football league, posted 4 Suggestions for the Jacksonville Jaguars. This is my video response to that post.
photo credit: by Michael Conroy – AP
To the winners and runner up, call me at 294-4800 or email me at joeymarchy@gmail.com by 2:00pm so we can work out the details!
First Prize Best Overall Holly Goleski’s Kindergarten class » Watch
Tickets presented by Custom Signs and Holmes Stamp » Section 233 Row Q Seats 25 and 26
Second Prize Eric Peck’s I’m on Fiyaaaaa » Watch
Tickets presented by Gil Samson and Urban Jacksonville » Section 229 Row Z Seats 18 and 19
Third Prize Young No’s Go Hard (Jaguars Anthem) » Listen
Tickets presented by Wingard Creative » Section 414 Row BB
Runner Up Prize Patrick Donnell’s Football Shotgun » Watch
Prize presented by NUFSED Clothing » Duval Jaguars Shirt (Purple/Large). Note: The runner up is also the first alternate if someone does not pick up their tickets.
Honorable Mentions
Stompin’ Time by James Terrence Brown (listen)
Show your Jaguars spirit at the Colts game or the stadium party with your own Generation J t-shirt. How to win your free shirt: Text the word Jaguars to 724665. Keep our return text message and show it to us on your phone. Get more details here: Young Generation J loyal to the Jaguars
This is one of the most important things I can emphasis going into this game. EVERYONE WEAR TEAL ON THURSDAY. Work. School. Church. Home. Whatever. Let’s show some city spirit on Thursday with everyone wearing teal. DO IT!
Halftone Def Studios for the awesome jagsonville.com domain.
Varick Rosete for the awesome jagsonville.com web design.
Duval Jaguars shirts from NUFSED Clothing
The Jagsonville promotion has far exceeded my expectations, and turned out to be exactly what I hoped it would be. Thanks to everyone who participated and will participate in the coming day. Here is some important information for the promotion along with some of the best entries from the past week.
Winners will be announced Wednesday night at Midnight on the Jagsonville.com site, the Urban Jacksonville Facebook page, Twitter and the Urban Jacksonville blog. Winners must contact me by 2:00pm Thursday to coordinate ticket pickup. If I have not talked to you by 2:00pm your tickets will be given to the runner up.
This is one of the most important things I can emphasis going into this game. EVERYONE WEAR TEAL ON THURSDAY. Work. School. Church. Home. Whatever. Let’s show some city spirit on Thursday with everyone wearing teal. DO IT!
I’ve neglected announcing the locations of the tickets:
Halftone Def Studios for the awesome jagsonville.com domain.
Varick Rosete for the awesome jagsonville.com web design.
Please read Gil’s latest article on the Jaguars David and Goliath. Not only is it a triumph in headline writing, he drops a crafty double entendre at the end of the post. Here’s a paraphrased excerpt:
Win out, and you’re in.
This has caused many people to say that the Jaguars “control their own destiny.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve always disliked that phrase. Suggesting the future is predetermined, and at the same time you are somehow able to change it seems contradictory. It’s either one or the other, isn’t it? I’d much rather leave destiny out of it and say that the Jaguars control themselves. Or at least, they will need to.
Photo: JACKSONVILLE, FL – DECEMBER 13: David Garrard #9 of the Jacksonville Jaguars looks to pass during the game against the Miami Dolphins at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium on December 13, 2009 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
The fog is back. A few weeks ago, the same morning fog crept over Jacksonville after a crunch-time win over the Buffalo Bills and seemed to cloud the Jaguars’ future. Now, after a heartbreaking loss to the Miami Dolphins, in front of the biggest crowd Jacksonville Municipal Stadium has seen all year, the fog is back, and the Jaguars’ future and view of the playoffs is more clouded than ever.
With a record of 7-6, the Jaguars now find themselves tentatively at the top of a four-way logjam of teams, all vying for the AFC’s sixth playoff seed: The Baltimore Ravens, the Dolphins, and the New York Jets. It’s been made clear that if the Jaguars hope to get themselves into the postseason without any outside help, they will have to win the remainder of their games, which include this week’s Thursday night home finale against the Indianapolis Colts (13-0), then visits to the New England Patriots (8-5) and Cleveland Browns (2-11).
Win out, and you’re in.
This has caused many people to say that the Jaguars “control their own destiny.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve always disliked that phrase. To suggest that the future is predetermined, and at the same time that you are somehow able to change it seems a little contradictory. It’s either one or the other, isn’t it?
I’d much rather leave destiny out of it and say that the Jaguars control themselves. Or at least, they will need to.
The Jaguars’ offense, in particular, will need to regain its focus after experiencing massive failures on Sunday. After being given several golden opportunities by the defense, the Jaguars failed to score any points in the second half. Against the Dolphins, the Jaguars only converted three of 14 third down attempts and went three-and-out six times. David Garrard played one of his worst games of the season completing only 11 of 26 passes for only 139 yards and a passer rating of 59.6. Maurice Jones-Drew was ineffective and held to just 59 yards on 18 carries.
With Peyton Manning and the Colts coming to town this Thursday night, the Jaguars cannot afford to squander offensive opportunities like they did against the Dolphins. The Colts aren’t likely to be as generous as Miami in giving the Jaguars chances to score. At 13-0, the Colts don’t find ways to lose. They finds ways to win.
With the postseason on the line, the Jaguars must shake off whatever affected their play on Sunday and rise to the occasion of Thursday night. With the whole world watching, David Garrard must play better, and his offensive line, including rookie tackles Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton, must give him the time he needs to be efficient. If the Jaguars hope to keep the pass rush hounds at bay, against one of the league’s best tandems of defensive ends in Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, they will also have to establish some semblance of a running game against the league’s 19th ranked rush defense.
So the stage is set for the biggest spectacle of the season. The Jaguars versus the Colts. An upstart rebuilding team fighting for a playoff spot versus a team that has won 22 consecutive regular season games and has locked up home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
David versus Goliath.
The question is, does David have the control to hit Goliath where it counts, when he has the chance? Anything’s possible, but one thing’s for sure: The Jaguars are definitely going to need more stones.
New Jaguars Touchdown Dance from Joey Marchy on Vimeo.
Buying tickets is one sure way to keep the Jaguars in Jacksonville. So we’re buying tickets and giving them away. Gil Samson, Urban Jacksonville Jaguars editor, bought the first pair to give away. There are more of us out there. Many of us already have season tickets, but we’re buying extra to help the team and giving them to you.
We have two tickets to give away for the Jaguars vs. Colts game on December 17th. Follow us on Twitter or Facebook to find out when more tickets available.
There are three ways you can win: (1) Best touchdown dance, (2) Best marketing idea for selling 2010 season tickets or (3) Best original song about the Jaguars.
Record video of yourself doing a bad-ass touchdown dance. Use your webcam via Facebook or upload to YouTube and post it on the Urban Jacksonville Facebook fan page. Easy. Here’s my first dance, it’s called “making eggs, egg sandwich”:
Take a photo of yourself at the stadium then post it to the Urban Jacksonville Facebook fan page with a creative way for the Jaguars to market, promote and sell more season tickets this year and in 2010.
Record a song showing your love for the Jaguars and post it to the Urban Jacksonville Facebook fan page. Use your webcam via Facebook or upload an MP3. Note: uploading MP3s requires a little technical savvy, if you record a song and need help getting it on the Facebook page, send me an MP3 and I’ll post it.
I couldn’t make it to every Jaguars home game this year, but I still wanted to support the team and buy tickets. I figured I’d just buy one and give it away to someone. I told a few friends and fans about the idea to buy extra tickets and to my surprise most people thought it was a good idea and a few even offered to pitch in.
This promotion is my way of contributing ticket sales to the team that means so much to me. We need people in this city to go above and beyond to keep the Jaguars here. If you’re a fan, do what you can to sell or buy tickets or contact me to buy tickets for this promotion.
Photo: Downtown Jacksonville, Florida (Photo courtesy of Paul Figura)
When I started doing these articles, I told Joey that I would probably stick to one post per week. First of all, I had never written anything in this capacity before and didn’t think that I could produce good content at a rate any higher than ‘one-a-week’. Secondly, I didn’t want to be that guy. The guy that’s constantly all up in everyone’s face about some cause or movement, so much that people just start turning a blind eye and a deaf ear. In fact, I’m sure there are people that have read these articles and/or follow me on Twitter that would argue that I’m already pushing it on both counts.
All that being said, I find myself compelled to write, while I should be doing other things. You know, the things I get paid to do; here at my actual job. I don’t really know what I’m trying to accomplish by writing this, or if anyone will even care. But that hasn’t stopped me yet, so here goes:
So I was sitting here at my desk at work, checking my Twitter feed, as any good social-networking slacker would, when I saw that this coming Sunday’s Jaguars-Texans game is officially blacked out. Now it’s not like this news surprised me. In fact, after the Jags’ dismal performance last Sunday in San Francisco, I think we all saw it coming. For most of us, the backlash after a Jaguars loss has become all but routine. That’s not news. That’s traffic on the Fuller-Warren or a robbery on the North side. That’s Jacksonville.
So if I wasn’t surprised, then why did it affect me so much? So much that I just had to stop what I was doing and start typing. Well maybe it wasn’t the news about the Texans game that got me so motivated. Maybe it was hearing that the other two remaining home games, including the nationally televised Thursday night game versus the Indianapolis Colts on December 17th, are currently no where close to being sold out. Yeah, maybe that was it.
No where close…
I just don’t get it. I kept repeating that phrase to myself over and over again, as I shook my head and drove to meet my wife for lunch. I was getting all ready to hit her, full-force, with another one of my unintelligible, Jaguars-related rants. Rants that she’s heard 100 times more often than any one person should ever tolerate.
Then I saw her. She looked miserable.
For the past few days, she’s been fighting as bad a head cold as you could imagine. Our house has become a graveyard for used tissues and unfinished glasses of Theraflu. And as I sat there trying to comfort her – eyes puffy and watery, nose runny and red, a zombie-like facial expression – I completely forgot about my impending tirade. Afterward, I realized I do get it.
There are a million things in life more important than the Jacksonville Jaguars. Why people don’t go to Jaguars games is no big secret or mystery. Jacksonville has been giving and hearing the myriad of different reasons for years now. And after all those years, one thing is clear: You can’t argue with them. You can’t convince somebody that doesn’t want to buy Jaguars tickets that their reasons for doing so are wrong, or ridiculous, or unfounded. Because no matter what the surface reason happens to be, the underlying reason is plain and simple: They don’t have to.
You can’t argue that.
No Jacksonville resident is obligated to buy Jaguars tickets. Therefore, any reason anyone gives for not going is going to be completely logical. Unfortunately, I think that’s where a lot of people get hung up. Choosing to purchase tickets and support the Jaguars isn’t a decision based on logic. It’s a decision based on emotions. You don’t do it because it makes all the sense in the world. You do it because you love it. And I’m not talking about a love for the Jaguars or even a love for football or sports in general. I’m talking about a love for this city.
I’ve lived in Jacksonville pretty much my whole life. I love this city with all my heart. It’s full of great people and limitless potential. This city has given me so much – people to love, memories to cherish, a place to call “home”. All without ever really asking for much in return. And right now a threat is looming and targeting one of my beloved city’s vital organs.
The fact of the matter is the Jaguars are a vital part of this city, and the possibility of losing the team becomes more real with each passing Jaguars game blackout. I hear the city crying out for help. And I’m sure you hear it too. So please don’t misunderstand.
The Jaguars don’t need you. Jacksonville needs you.
Think about that. Now of course, there’s no line in the sand; no call to arms. And the truth still remains, you don’t have to do anything. However, the other side of that truth is that clearly, something must be done. This city has given all of us too much to let indifference dictate its fate. To sit by and watch as outside forces penetrate our city walls and tell us what our city should and shouldn’t do; what it is and what it isn’t; who we are and who we aren’t.
Something must be done.
We must protect this house.
Photo: Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio looks on in the final seconds of a 20-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in an NFL football game in San Francisco, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)
In a press conference earlier in the week, Jack Del Rio said his team would clearly need to travel better than it did in its last outing to the west coast. Of course, Del Rio was referring to Week 5, when the Jaguars flew across the country to Seattle, only to get shut out by the Seahawks 41-0. Well, I guess you could say this game was better. Instead of getting shut out, the Jaguars scored a whole three points on their way to a 20-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers this Sunday.
Yeah, you’re right. It wasn’t really “better”. It was just a different kind of bad. The Jaguars weren’t blown out like they were in Seattle. In fact, the Jaguars hung in the game and gave themselves several opportunities to get back into it. Unfortunately, they did an equally good job of squandering those opportunities at the worst possible times. On four trips to the red zone, the Jaguars only produced three points, and David Garrard fumbled the ball away twice.
There’s no doubt that after such a poor showing, the knee-jerk reaction in Jacksonville will be to crucify Garrard. And although I do think at times he holds on to the ball too long and tries to do too much, I do not think that the burden of this loss should be placed entirely on Garrard’s shoulders. All too often the pass protection was breaking down before Garrard even had time to set his feet. By the end of the game, the Jaguars’ quarterback was hit a total of 12 times, including a season-high six sacks. Now I don’t care who you are, but if you’re getting beaten down like a rag doll all day, you’re going to have a tough time throwing the football.
They say that football games are won and lost in the trenches. The team that wins the battle at the line of scrimmage is usually the team that goes home happy. On Sunday, the offensive line struggled greatly to provide David Garrard with the time he needed to effectively distribute the football. The 49ers came in with a good game plan for stopping the run and kept the O-line on their heels for much of the game. Rookie left tackle Eugene Monroe looked like a turnstile at times, and his draft-mate Eben Britton had a tough day as well, despite playing very well against the Bills last week.
There’s just something about that west coast trip. The good news is that this coming Sunday the Jaguars will begin a stretch of three consecutive home games, starting with their division rival, the Houston Texans.
Or at least it would be good news in other cities.
Jacksonville provides a different dynamic that must be acknowledged. Despite being in the thick of the AFC Wild Card race, the Jaguars are in a difficult position where each week they must not only try to win a football game, but also try to impress and win over the people of Jacksonville. This year, blackouts have become customary on Sundays, yet yesterday’s away game against the 49ers was actually televised. It was one of the few times the people of Jacksonville were able to see their team for free. Unfortunately, they probably didn’t like what they saw.
If the Jaguars hope to gain respect from Jacksonville and from the NFL, they will have to prove that they are a true playoff caliber team and not a soft-schedule impostor. As the temperature drops and we head into December, the road gets increasingly difficult. The Jaguars’ final five opponents are all AFC teams. The first four of which, including Indianapolis and New England, are very much in the playoff race.
It’s in the crisp December air. Teams across the league have caught the scent of post-season football. The Jaguars MUST be ready for war. However, to win the war they’ll have to win the first battle. And it all starts in the trenches.
