Pro Football Hall of Fame’s statement regarding cancellation of NFL/Hall of Fame Game

While the Pro Football Hall of Fame is disappointed by the news that the NFL/Hall of Fame Game will not be played, we appreciate the effort that was made on our behalf by the league and players right up until the last minute.

Although the game is an important part of the 10-day, 18-event Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival, it is important to remember that the most important event is the Enshrinement Ceremony which will be held on Saturday night August 6 as scheduled.

Obviously, the loss of this year’s game will have a significant adverse economic impact on the Hall of Fame and the Canton community. We believe, however, that the long-term stability this new agreement will provide will be beneficial not only to the league and the players, but to the fans and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Recent Comments

The players and the owners should be ashamed. They both had plenty of time to get the CBA agreed upon and sign in time to save the HOF game. I'm attending for the 1st and probably the last time. I feel sorry for the inductees. The game on Sunday would have been a fitting end to a HOF career. You selfish b------s!!!!

I was afraid of this game being cancelled by the NFL. I had purchased game tickets even before the teams were announced. Then when they announced the Rams were playing, I was ecstatic. I've been going to Canton every other year since 2001 for just the Enshrinment Ceremony and the game. With the economy still being slow it doesn't make sense to fly from Miami just to go to the Ceremony. I'm very upset, but that's life. I was looking forward to seeing the Rams play and greeting Marshall and his friends from the Greatest Show on Turf. Oh well, congratulations to all, and especially to Marshall Faulk. Go Rams!!!

We have been attending Enshrinement weekend for many years. After months of eagerly waiting to see our Chicago Bears play in the HOF game, we are devastated by the news. For that reason, this will be our last Enshrinement. Shame on  the NFL, the owners and the players, all of whom forgot about the game... they only thought about their wallets.

Muslim headscarf forces teen girl to bench in hoops game

By Cameron Smith
     A teenage girl in Maryland was the victim of what some have called religious persecution in a youth basketball league earlier this week, when 12-year-old Maheem Haq, a Muslim, was forced to sit on the bench for the first half of a basketball game because of her headscarf.
     According to WJZ TV in Baltimore, Haq refused to take off her headscarf when a Hagerstown youth basketball league ref requested she do so. Her refusal led the ref to bar her from the game's first half.
     The Baltimore Sun reported that she was allowed to play the second half wearing the hijab after a league administrator granted her a religious exemption.
     "We were very upset when we heard about it," Connie Cline, the mother of one of Haq's teammates told WJZ. "She has been able to play the entire time and there's never been a problem."
     While the referee's decision has been widely condemned, the official was technically within his right, because the Mid-Maryland Girls Basketball league hadn't asked for a specific exemption to allow Haq to wear her religious wrap in games. The official in question, who has not been named, deemed that the scarf represented a safety hazard and banned Haq from the game on those grounds. It has already been announced that the referee will face no penalty for his decision to force Haq out of competition.
     "The referee was within his rights. He was right to do what he did," Mid-Maryland Girls' Basketball's Daphnie Campbell told WJZ TV. "I will accept full responsibility for it. Being new, no, I didn't know anything about it. I didn't know I had to ask for permission, I didn't know a letter had to be on file. I didn't know anything of that."
     Still, the decision was a surprising one, because it was the first time any referee had made a comment about Haq's headwrap. Haq had previously played basketball while wearing a headscarf for three years without incident.
     The television station reported that Haq's team actually offered to forfeit the game as a protest of the perceived discrimination against the Muslim player, but Haq's family refused to allow it. Instead, the teen's father said his daughter sitting out the half was a way to stand up for her religious beliefs and prove one can accommodate both Muslim traditions and modern American pastimes.

The ALL STAR Game

I don't care what your politics are, it was a great opening ceremony. A well manicured field full of millionaires, but, to me, it was more about the opening ceremony.

Introduction of the teams then intro of the managers, then the starting players.

Then a gigantic flag, anchored by armed forces, unfurled in the outfield.

Then a film about unheard of people, who have decided to "do something," or "give something back," and briefly their stories. One lady knits and donates hats to people who are going through cancer therapy. Others did a variety of volunteer work.

And then, they came out on the playing field, in a group, and the players, converged on them to thank and congratulate them. It was neat. These were people who devote time, money and energy to doing things for others, and they do it because they want to, and they were being recognized for what they did. It was really neat.

Then more film, the President, and all his living predecessors, congratulating the players, and then they congratulated the group of caring people.

I admit, I had a few tears. Someone decided to thank a group of people who generally do what they do out of dedication and caring, and they were being recognized.

Then, Stan Musial, who I have seen play at old Crosley Field in Cincinnati, 80 some years old, came on to the field in a golf cart, and he was carrying a baseball.

ST. LOUIS — If the buildup to the 80th All-Star Game belonged to St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols, Tuesday night's celebration belonged to America and Cardinals legend Stan Musial.
A sea of red and a deafening roar in appreciation greeted Musial, 88, who arrived via the right-field gate in a maroon golf cart.

But then, President Obama emerged from the dugout, went to the golf cart, and Mr. Musial gave the baseball to the President, resplendent in jeans and a Chicago White Sox jacket, and threw out the first pitch, to Albert Pujols.

It was a great opening ceremony, the National Anthem left a little to be desired, couldn't decide whether she was wearing shorts or a mini skirt. People just don't dress appropriately anymore, to suit my tastes. At least is wasn't Roseanne Barr.

Whoever put the show together is to be congratulated.