[luigi.delta]

Intra week activities
The Arizona Daily Star Sport Column
September 7th 1982

This week the Wildcats received the visit of Linebacker Adolfo Davis, the top ranked linebacker in the nation at the high school level. He is the #33 prospect in the country at the moment and would constitute a precious add to our defense for next year to put behind Mccollum for the Central linebacker position, or alongside him if Coach Smith decided to shift to a defense based on 4 linebackers. The visit has probably upset William Fisher and Stephan Metcalf who aspire to the same position, should the coach make such a decision.

Sealed lips instead as far as this week's game plan is concerned. Our next client Baylor runs a vertical passing type of offense and in their first game their QB David Mangrum has thrown for 331 yards, completing 26 of his 36 passes. A credible threat for us, well supplemented by a corps of capable receivers, and first among all them senior wideout Dallas Matlock. Their defense gave up only 157 yards last week. Judging on these numbers it looks like our only hope is to unleash our ground offensive; after all, on paper our running game is stronger than Baylor's opponent of last week; Rutgers. But on paper is one thing and in practice is another, and even if we wanted to establish our running game we would still have to mix it up with the passing game on a defense that conceded a grand total of 57 yards through the air last week. On a last note, according to the bookmakers we should lose this game by a touchdown.

Support
717 S Mcdougal St. Bloomington IN
September 12th 1982
This letter is in Italian and translated for your benefit

Dear Franco,
Last week your mother and I took a day off from work to go visit Grandma and Uncle Earl and we watched the Arizona University game on TV. I’ve been watching your mother’s brother jump on the chair at each and every turn of events of what they say has been a crazy game. As you know, I do not understand much about the game of American Football, but I understood when in the last minute of the game your team managed to stop the enemy at the short distance where it had managed to advance. I literally saw your uncle jumping on his chair when that teammate of yours committed that foul which gave the enemy such a close position to your team’s goal line and with the automatic first down. I believe Baylor was 14 yards away from tying the game. The foul was so evident that Uncle Earl it saw before the referees. He jumped again and screamed when your team’s defender broke down the first enemy pass. God it was so close! The second attempt almost gave us a heart attack, when on Baylor’s second attempt the enemy receiver caught the ball but was immediately taken down by a rabid defender, and gained only 3 yards of the 10 that he needed. I was confused when the game stopped and everybody went back to the sideline. I thought it was all over, but uncle Earl told me that Baylor had asked for a timeout. Then with the third attempt another failed pass, and when finally the defender broke the fourth pass by Baylor, uncle Earl lost it and started to jump all over the living room. “The UPSET!!, the UPSET!!” he jumped around screaming all over the place like a child.
I am so glad that the result of 24-17 gave your team the second consecutive victory this year. Uncle Earl told me that this was an important game against a team which was on paper stronger than yours.

I am also super proud of your performance. When I saw you catching that beautiful soft pass from your quarterback and taking it beyond the goal line for the first score of your college career, I felt a tremendous emotion and so did everybody else here. Your mother especially was so proud of you! I was glad to see you not doing all that nonsense that players do when they score. Good solid serious man. Do the job and move on!
After you scored the cameras focused on a spot on the stands where there were a bunch of Arizona fans waving Italian flags and even a giant poster of the Frecce Tricolori* and I felt so proud that you brought to these people a passion for our country which has always been ostracized by meaningless and pretentious stereotypes.

I want you to know how proud I am of how you began the season and I hope that you will stay strong and safe throughout it all. Uncle Earl told me that you had a great game against Baylor with 3 receptions out of 5 passes, 73 yards and of course the score. Everybody here in Bloomington who follows football is proud of you as well and some people who know me already stopped me on the street last week to congratulate me for your first games. Even at work my managers and coworkers look at me in a different way since when you represent the town of Bloomington on the national stage in the way you do; as a leader and a protagonist; as a Saverio should do.
Your mother kisses and hugs you and so do Grandma and uncle Earl.
Take care and stay safe, I can wait for when you will come visit for the holiday.

Love
Your father

*Frecce Tricolori
Literally Tricolor Arrows: the Italian Air Force Aerobatic Team.