Call The Back Page
866-574-ESPN
866-574-3776
 |
|
|
| The Back Page Daily Recap | September 4, 2008
3:00 Hour - A football Thursday? We will have our fair share of football Friday's during the season, but with the NFL season starting tonight with the Giants playing Washington, it was time for an all NFL show. Jason says he will give his picks in the 4:00 and 5:00 hour, but NFL picks are difficult because of the injuries that a team can suffer. Jason wants people to give the Giants some respect. We wrapped up the first hour with NASCAR phenom Joey Logano. The Middletown native spoke about driving for Joe Gibbs Racings, replacing Tony Stewart in the No. 20 car, and being on the track with the veterans of NASCAR.
4:00 Hour - We continued with the NASCAR talk to begin the 2nd hour of the show. Callers discussed whether or not the NASCAR age restriction should be higher. After the converstaion with 18 year old Joey Logano, Jason thinks maybe NASCAR should take the same route as the NFL and NBA in a higher age restriction. The other NASCAR discussion was how people get into NASCAR during the MLB pennant race and NFL season. Evan defends NASCAR, saying he'd rather watch the Chase than an MLB pennant race. Jason wraps up the second hour with his AFC picks; the Patriots, Colts, Ravens, and Chargers are division winners with the Jaguars and Broncos as wild cards.
5:00 Hour - Jason made his NFC picks to open up the open-phones hour. He has the Giants, Buccaneers, Vikings, and Seahawks with the Saints and Cowboys as wild cards. Many people called to dispute Jason's pick as a Giants fan taking Big Blue to win the NFC East. Many callers feel it is finally the Cowboys year. One caller says Eli Manning is still a HS quarterback which fires up Jason and other callers. The Giants need some respect after their run to the Super Bowl last winter. We get the latest in Fantasy Football news from FantasyGuru.com's John Hansen. John says start Michael Turner, but don't even think of starting Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan. He also says be cautious starting Browns QB Derek Anderson and WR Braylon Edwards this week against Dallas. Also in that game start Jason Whitten, Tony Romo, and Terrell Owens, who should all have big games against a poor Cleveland secondary.
6:00 Hour - We wrapped up the show with more talk on Jason's NFL picks. Callers don't understand how the Broncos are a Wild Card pick and how the Giants are going to start out 6-0, like Jason has suggested. Jason also previews tonight's Giants/Redskins game and Yankees vs. Rays (Rasner vs. Kazmir).
September 3, 2008
3:00 Hour - Is Dustin Pedroia the AL MVP? Can Tyler Lorenzen bounce back from a poor performance vs. Hofstra? Will Mike Mussina get to 20 wins? Pedroia continues to make a case to be the AL MVP after last night's rout vs. Baltimore. Pedroia followed up that with a big double today that led to the Red Sox tying the game vs. the Orioles and then winning it in the 9th. Lorenzen gets a pass vs. Hofstra because of his play throughout 2007 and Jason believes he will be fine vs. Temple. Mussina picked up the win on Tuesday to win his 17th of the season. Jason called it at the beginning of the year saying "Mike Mussina would have a big bounce back year." Joba returned to the Yankee pen to help protect a late lead.
4:00 Hour - Football takes over "The Back Page" we discuss the opening of the NFL season, which is tomorrow and more UCONN Football. Chip Malafronte stops in for a weekly chat about UCONN Football. Chip says the Huskeis can't sleep on Temple, who destroyed Army 35-7 last week. RB Andre Dixon will play, but Donald Brown continues to start after a 4 TD game vs. Hofstra. Chip agrees with Jason that Lorenzen gets a pass and will rebound in Philadelphia vs. Temple. Jason's day turns miserable when the Red Sox come back from down 4-0 to win 5-4 after a terrible throwing error by Orioles pitcher Jim Miller.
5:00 Hour - Today's show really had an open-phones hour to it. Everything from the election to the Raiders was discussed from 5-6:00 on "The Back Page." Jason rather watch Sarah Palin's speech at the GOP National Convention than the Yankees vs. Rays. He wants to see what she has to say about her pregnant daughter. Many callers were fired up to talk about politics including one caller who thought Jason was quicked to judge the VP candidate. Other topics during the open-phones hour was whether or not the Raiders can make the playoffs and the fact that any team is in it at the beginning of the NFL season. You can realistically say all, but about 8 teams have no shot at the post season.
6:00 Hour - We wrapped up the program with some news on the Tom Brady front. Some reports say Brady has a cracked foot, but will play. Other reports have him out for 2-4 weeks. We hope to have more on this on tomorrow's show.
Tuesday September 2, 2008
3:00 Hour: Jason has an interesting take on the Yankees season. He says they are only 4 games out of the Wild Card with 22 games to play. The Yankees right now are 7 games out with 25 to play, but the final 3 game series is in Boston. So for Jason, just make up 4 games prior to that series vs. the Red Sox and make it interesting. Jason wasn't happy to recieve A-Rod hate mail due to the Yankees 3B going 3-6 with 4 RBI on Monday. Jason also says that he is a bowling free agent and needs a team to sign with prior to the season starting.
4:00 Hour: Over the weekend CC Sabathia earned his 9th win since going over to the National League. This one was a little more controversial. Sabathia gave up only one hit, a little dribbler in the 5th inning to Andy LaRoche. The official scorer called it a hit, while everyone else in the press box thought it was an error. The Brewers are appealing the call to MLB to try and get CC a no-no. Yankees and Mets official scorer Howie Karpin tells us its difficult for us to break down the call because we didn't see it live. The mistake the Brewers scorer made was making the call right away instead of looking at a replay, which he is allowed to do. Jason says even if Major League Baseball reverses the call, Sabathia shouldn't get historical credit for a no-hitter because he didn't pitch with the pressue of having a no-no for the final 4 innings. 5:00 Hour: In the open-phones hour, Jason and the callers discussed the shooting of Jaguars offensive tackle Richard Collier, who becomes the third NFL player shot in the last 20 months. Darrant Williams and Sean Taylor were fatally shot during 2007. The discussion surrounded NFL players and other athletes putting themselves in positions to get injured, killed, or arrested. The irony of all this is that Taylor, who had put himself in troubling positions, was sitting at home when he was shot to death last November. 6:00 Hour: The show wrapped up with a little college football discussion. Page thinks it's rediculous that one week into the season USC has jumped Georgia in the AP poll when both teams won. Also, UCONN was picked 6th in the Big East preaseason poll and after the first week of games, they find themselves in better position than Rutgers, Louiville, and Pittsburgh (all lost at home). |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jason Page Bio
I was born on September 20th 1977 at Yale New Haven Hospital in New Haven. I’m the youngest of four siblings with a couple of older twin sisters and an older brother. Radio has pretty much been my life since I was 16. I started working in media through my public access station as a junior in high school and the rest, as they say, is history. I graduated from East Haven High School back in 1995. In my senior year, our school started a public access television station just for students at EHHS. This was a major turning point in my life. If there was a sporting event involving the Yellowjackets of EHHS, I was usually behind the microphone calling the game for “YJTV.” That was all the sampling I needed for what this industry had to offer. After a failed attempt at going to college(was never much for Music and Geography classes) I decided to go to Connecticut School of Broadcasting. I figured it was best to have some sort of secondary education on my resume and it gave me access to their studios. After graduating from CSB in Stratford, it was out into the real world. Northampton MA., Rugby ND., Chestertown MD., Keene NH., and Danbury CT., were some of the places I called home since 1998. In 2003, after about a year with WLAD-AM 800 in Danbury, I was given an opportunity to go work with the folks at Sirius Satellite Radio in New York City. For the next 5 years, I did everything from work on a morning show on one of their talk channels to hosting my own overnight sports-talk show for a couple of years. I also hosted in afternoon drive and anchored updates on their NFL Channel for a few years. There were plenty of fun times and plenty of frustrating times as well. I could never seem to find a gig worthy of leaving Sirius. I made contact with some Clear Channel people I knew in New Haven early in 2007 about the possibility of doing a show on the newly created ESPN Radio 1300. Those conversations ultimately led me to the opportunity to do a show that would air in both Hartford on ESPN Radio 1410 and New Haven’s ESPN Radio 1300. For me, it was the easiest decision in my 30 years on this planet. Coming home was always something I hoped to do. It’s radio in my own backyard after spending the past 10 years on the road. The sporting equivalent would be playing baseball for the Royals, Twins, Rockies, Mariners and Marlins before coming home to spend the rest of your career with the Yankees. It’s so cliché, but there really is “no place like home.” |
|
|
|
I watched it..... The proof is below
Sunday 08-24-2008 4:42am ET
I stayed awake until 2:20 AM and watched the United States Mens Basketball Team win their Gold Medal game against Spain 117-108. It only took two weeks, but I got what I ultimately wanted. I got the U.S. in a close game and in a position where every possession counted. I got the U.S. having to play in the half-court set and I was able to see yet again why Kobe Bryant is the greatest player in the whole world.
The shots Kobe made and created in the 4th quarter against Spain were tremendous. a 4-point play late in the fourth for Kobe actually gave me some goosebumps. I feel much better about Team USA as the Olympics end, than I did when the Olympics began.
It had to be nice to be Coach K and have the luxury of having a Kobe Bryant on your team. Knowing in the huddle that you could pull him aside and say "Hey Kobe, go take over." It was fun to watch and I am glad I stayed awake for it.
I am going to bed now........ Visions of gold medals dancing in my head.
Word of Advice......
Saturday 08-23-2008 11:05am ET
If you don't want to get kicked out of the Olympics, don't kick the official in the head. Did anyone see the guy in Taekwondo(spelling er) who got disqualified from Bejing after kicking the official in the head after that official made him forfeit the match for taking too long during an injury time-out?? Gotta love it.
The U.S. Womens Basketball team has been almost as dominant as the Men in these Olympics. But I'll give an award for best uniforms in these Olympic games to the Australians. Amazing.
The Yankees won last night but will Mike Mussina get to 20 wins?? Or, will he yet again come painfully close without getting that first 20-win season. I don't think there is a guy around baseball who wouldn't be rooting for Moose to get this first 20-win season.
I'll be at the Mens Final tonight at Pilot Penn Tennis in the Clear Channel Box over in section 24 down in the 5th row. Swing by and say hello if your a listener that's going to be in the area.
It's a busy day for me with a round of golf at Oxford Greens with Producer Extrordinaire Evan Wilner and then the tennis to go to. Then tomorrow, we go out and play Stanley Golf Course in New Britain in the latest "Playin with Page" promotion.
Never a moments rest
You win some...... You lose some.
Tuesday 08-19-2008 10:56am ET
Such was the case last night with the Shelton National Little League team playing in Williamsport PA. at the Little League World Series. Congratulations on a great season. Just two outs away from moving on to a matchup with the Pool A winner, Shelton fell in extra innings on Monday night. Still, hold your heads high boys. You have a lot to be proud of.
I said this week would be a pivotal week in whether the Yankees play meaningful games late in September or whether they fade away in the postseason chase. Tonight will start a three-game series in Toronto against the surging Blue Jays. The Yankees last stand?? I think so. Lets see what kind of heart this team displays.
Does anyone care what happens at the Olynpics for the rest of this week?? Let me know on the show today.
The Mets bullpen imploded yet again yesterday in Pittsburgh. Just a few innings away from a 7-0 road trip, the boys from Shea reminded us why they haven't been a sure thing all year in the National League East.
If this is the end of Tom Glavine's career, what a career it's been.
I love how Joe Torre and the Dodgers front office are making a legit run at a World Series in 2008. Greg Maddux will be a big boost to that.
Unreal Turn of Events!!
Thursday 08-07-2008 4:53am ET
If you had asked me to place bets on Brett Favre becoming a New York Jet when all of this was said and done, I would have told you that pigs would fly before that happens. It was always listed as a possibility but who were we kidding?? The Jets had never shown a knack for "going for it." With a new stadium on the horizon and the Giants touting a Super Bowl, it's hard to believe that the Jets will be stealing most of the back pages (pun intended) in New York.
I asked the question yesterday on the program and I still ask it in my head as I write this: How much better did the New York Jets become today?? They are a wild-card team at best with the addition of Favre. Maybe for the Jets that makes this move worthwhile. It would seem, that at best the Jets have 2 years to win a Super Bowl with Favre at the helm. After that, all bets are off and he'll be retired again, and likely for good this time. Frankly, as long as Tom Brady and Peyton Manning reside in the AFC with the Patriots and Jets, it's hard to believe the Jets are headed to the Super Bowl anytime soon.
The Packers are likely to wind up with a 2nd round in exchange for Favre as the Jets gave up a conditional draft pick. If the Jets make the playoffs and Favre takes 70 percent of the Jets snaps, then Green Bay gets that 2nd round pick. If the Jets make the Super Bowl that becomes a 1st round pick. If neither of those thing happen, then the Jets give up a 3rd or 4th round pick. All and all, this is a good deal for the Packers. A 2nd or 1st round pick for a guy who might play two more years, at best, is a coup for a franchise who didn't have a ton of bargaining leverage.
As someone who lives in East Haven, I am just looking forward to being able to watch every single snap that Brett Favre will take this year without having to purchase a satellite dish.
Red Sox, Yankees, Mets and Favre
Monday 08-04-2008 9:34am ET
It seems the title of this blog has been the theme for my show for the past few weeks. It appears that one of those listed above will be settled soon enough. The only word I can use to describe this Packers/Brett Favre ordeal would be "mismanaged." It was mismanaged by Favre when he retired only to unretire just as quickly. It was mismanaged by the Packers in the past 24 hours when they decided to do an about-face and have Favre compete with Aaron Rodgers for the starting job in training camp. I'll get into this more during the program today.
Now to the Red Sox. A great weekend for them. They swept a weekend series from the A's and Jason Bay was a big part of the reason why. He's not Manny Ramirez but he certainly contributed in a huge way to all of their victories over the weekend. The fact that Oakland couldn't score against Shelton National probably doesn't hurt either. But victories are victories and you take them where you can get them, especially around this time of the year. By the way, Manny Ramirez isn't playing too badly either.
The Yankees turned what could have been a disasterous weekend into one that looks a little rosier by the time all is said and done. Mike Mussina picked up his 14th win of the year and the Yankee bats woke up over the weekend. Xavier Nady continues to play well since arriving in New York. The Yankees need to figure out a way to get Mariano Rivera straightened out when it comes pitching in non-save situations. He cost the Yankees what could have been a third win this year and he's done this on more than one occasion. Again, guys need to be held accountable and that includes Mo.
The Mets couldn't figure out a way to beat a Houston team thats struggled all year. Now, both they and the Marlins find themselves 3 games back in the loss column as August baseball kicks into gear. Suddenly, Jerry Manuel doesn't look so smart and Willie Randolph doesn't look so dumb. The Mets will start a critical seven-game homestand tomorrow with the Padres and Marlins. Anything less than 5-2 on this homestand will be unacceptable.
Trade Deadline......
Thursday 07-31-2008 11:03am ET
Will they or won't they?? That is the question as Major League Baseball's Trade deadline arrives. Have the Red Sox decided that Manny Ramirez is such a cancer to this team, that they would subtract perhaps, their greatest offensive piece in an affort to better clubhouse harmony?? What an indictment it would me on Manny Ramirez for the Red Sox to deal him at the trade deadline. But as is always the case in Professional Sports, someone will always be willing to pay for talent. Manny will get his rediculous contract in the offseason. There will always be some general manager or owner that says "I can get through to this guy" or "all he needs is a change of scenery." The fact of the matter is, Manny ramirez would need a personality transplant in order for him to be in the right situation. Manny will always be Manny. The Red Sox enabled him for years in Boston. He was allowed to play by a different set of rules than anyone else in Boston. Someone finally figured out that this wasn't best for the team and decided a trade was necessary. But I ask this question...... If Boston were atop the A.L. East by 4 or 5 games over the Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays were in their usual basement dwelling, would we be having this conversation. I don't think so.
|
|
© 2008