here's a weird piece of info...
I just read on NFL.com that the Howard "Red" Hickey passed away this week. Mr. Hickey was the inventor of the shotgun formation. For the unintiated, this is where the Quarterback stands several yards behind the ceter (and subsequently several yards behind the line of scrimmage) and the ball is snapped to him like a punt. In theory this gives the passer more time to find an open receiver before he gets pummeled. He called it the shotgun formation because it shot wide receivers out into the open field as if they were being fired from a shotgun. (a question I was just pondering the other day while playing Madden '06). If it were not for Mr. Hickey, the lives of all of us football fans would be minutely different. That is one minute difference I do not want. Godspeed, Red.
