SECTION B VISIT SAMOA NEWS ONLINE @ SAMOANEWS.COM FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2017 CLASSIFIEDS • CARTOONS • ALOHA BRIEFS & MORE ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ SAMOAN SOLDIERS TO COMPETE IN FIRST EVER US ARMY ALL AMERICAN BOWL 7 ON 7 FLAG FOOTBALL GAME by Blue Chen-Fruean Sam, SGT Travis Tofi , and SPC the game is all about, and their the Top 100 high school players NBC. Lei Sam and the crew are C M Samoa News Correspondent Mark Liu. role in the program. in an annual East vs. West face inviting those in the Lone Star Y K Five Samoan soldiers are SSG Joseph Lei Sam, the “The game pits the top sol- off at the Alamo Dome in San State to come out and watch making history, having been team’s quarterback, has also dier athletes vs. the Top 100 Antonio, Texas. them compete in the 7 vs. 7 selected by an independent been selected to serve as the high school football players in The Army Bowl has a game at Heroes Stadium in San board of the Army Marketing program manager and Non- the country,” Lei Sam shared, worldwide television audience, Antonio, TX. and Research Group, to com- Commissioned Offi cer in adding that they will also serve thanks to a live broadcast on Entry is free and the game pete in the fi rst ever U.S Army Charge (NCOIC) for the Sol- as mentors for the players NBC. The 2018 U.S. Army All- takes place Tuesday, January 2, All American Bowl 7 versus 7 dier Mentorship Program of the throughout the week leading up American Bowl is scheduled 2018 from 2p.m. - 4 p.m. Flag Football Game. Army Marketing and Research to the U.S. Army All-American for Saturday, January 6, 2018, Samoa News thanks our They are US Army SGT Group. Bowl (USAAAB), which is the at 1:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. CT Samoan soldiers for the service Nathan Vaitautolu, 1SG Dia- Lei Sam explained to Samoa nation’s premier high school and locals who want to be part and we wish them the best of mond Ott, SSG Joseph Lei- News, earlier this week, what All-American game, featuring of the action can view it live on luck in the upcoming games. Alo i ou faiva! Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfi eld named the AP Player of the Year NEW YORK (AP) — Baker Mayfi eld is The Associated Press college football Player of the Year, becoming the fourth Oklahoma quarterback to win the award since it was estab- lished in 1998. Mayfi eld easily outpointed Stanford running back Bryce Love, who came in second. Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, the other fi nalist and last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, was third in the award announced Thursday. Mayfi eld received 51 fi rst- place votes from the 56 AP college football poll voters who submitted player of the year ballots, and a total of 157 points. Love (83 points) and Jackson (39 points) each received two fi rst-place votes and Penn State running Saquon C M Barkley received a fi rst-place Y K vote and came in fourth. Mayfi eld, Love and Jackson are also the fi nalists for the Heisman, which will be handed out Saturday night in New York. Mayfi eld is a former walk- on who has led the No. 2 Sooners to the College Foot- ball Playoff, where they will play No. 3 Georgia in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1. Mayfi eld leads the nation in passer effi ciency rating and has thrown for 4,340 yards and 41 touchdowns. He joins Josh Heupel (2000), Jason White (2003) and Sam Bradford (2008) as pre- vious winners from Oklahoma. No other school has had more than two players win AP Player (Continued on page B9) Page B2 samoa news, Friday, December 8, 2017 Playoff-chasing Cow- boys also eye future with young secondary FRISCO, Texas (AP) — miss at least one game because Jourdan Lewis doesn’t recall of a small fracture in his back sitting around at training camp sustained in last week’s 38-14 with fellow rookies Chidobe win over Washington. Awuzie and Xavier Woods, Anthony Brown started 10 of plotting their takeover of the the fi rst 11 games after a strong secondary for the Dallas Cow- rookie season as a sixth-rounder boys.There was this little thing last year. He’s been penalty- called the depth chart, and they prone, though, and the Cow- weren’t at the top of it. boys decided to shake things up “We had a lot of guys in when Philip Rivers of the LA front of us at fi rst,” said Lewis, Chargers threw for 434 yards on a third-round pick out of Mich- Thanksgiving in Dallas’ third igan. “We were just trying to straight loss.Brown’s demo- learn the playbook in training tion coincided with Awuzie’s camp and we didn’t know that return from the hamstring woes. we would have this opportunity Awuzie’s three pass breakups coming late in the season.” against the Redskins matched FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2017, fi le photo, New York Jets defensive end Leonard Williams (92) and It’s coming because of inju- Lewis for the most in a game cornerback Morris Claiborne (21) celebrate during the second half of the team’s NFL football game ries, attrition and a demotion, for a Dallas defensive back this against the Carolina Panthers in East Rutherford, N.J. Williams has just two sacks this season, leading to the possibility that all season.“We all have confi dence but he has a whopping 26 quarterback hits. Th at means he’s getting quarterbacks off their spots, three could start Sunday at the in ourselves and confi dence in forcing throws and making them downright uncomfortable. “People want to see the sacks,” Williams New York Giants (2-10) as the each other,” said Woods, who acknowledged Th ursday, Dec. 7. “I wouldn’t really call a QB hit a stat or anything. I just think of it Cowboys (6-6) try to keep faint has played safety and corner- as being disruptive. Th at’s what a defensive player wants to do, is be disruptive in any way possible. playoff hopes alive. back. “I’m sure they’d say the “No matter what type of stat it is, if you’re being disruptive, that’s a good defensive play.” For Dallas, it could be the same thing as well. We study (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun, File) best look yet at the future in the game. We think we’re the secondary after letting four prepared.”While Lewis and veterans go in free agency and Woods each has had his fi rst Williams being disruptive for drafting four potential replace- career interception, defensive ments .Awuzie was the highest coordinator Rod Marinelli’s draft choice, a second-rounder fi rst concern is young players out of Colorado, so logic had keeping opposing receivers in Jets, despite lack of sacks him being the fi rst to get signifi - front of them.Still, the longtime cant playing time before ham- coach is undaunted by the pros- FLORHAM PARK, N.J. call a QB hit a stat or anything. tied for third-most in the NFL. string issues kept him out of six pect of three rookies on the fi eld (AP) — Leonard Williams is I just think of it as being disrup- Denver is also second-worst of his fi rst nine games. most of the snaps. making his presence felt on tive. That’s what a defensive in the league with a minus-16 Lewis played nearly 90 per- “If they’re the roof, they’re opposing quarterbacks — even player wants to do, is be disrup- turnover ratio — something cent of the snaps in Week 2 at the ceiling to the whole house, if his sacks total doesn’t tell the tive in any way possible. Williams and the Jets hope to Denver after injuries to Awuzie keep it in front of us and make whole story. “No matter what type of stat capitalize on. and free agent pickup Nolan them earn it down the road,” The New York Jets defen- it is, if you’re being disruptive, “We call it takeaways Carroll, who was later released. Marinelli said . “They’ve got a sive lineman has just two this that’s a good defensive play.” because if it’s a takeaway, He’s been out there ever since lot of confi dence, a lot of energy season, but he has a whop- Williams entered this season, we’re forcing it, rather than a and is tied for the team lead right now.”Byron Jones and ping 26 quarterback hits. That his third in the NFL, with a goal turnover where we’re waiting with seven pass breakups. Jeff Heath, the starting safeties means he’s getting passers of getting a sack per game. He’s for them to turn the ball over,” Woods was the long shot as all season, are the most expe- off their spots, forcing throws way off that pace, of course, but Williams said. a sixth-round pick, listed as a rienced defensive backs with and making them downright he has gotten consistent pres- “So, we’re defi nitely going safety coming in but now set to Scandrick out. But the Cowboys uncomfortable. sure the past few games. Also, to try to get after the ball. We play cornerback in the slot with haven’t hesitated to juggle their “People want to see the the sprained wrist that ailed see that they had a lot of ball Orlando Scandrick expected to spots when they’ve struggled.