Shortbox Bernie

[Kevin Gallagher @KevG163]

TOOOOOOOON!!!

Happy Birthday, Al Toon!

The #Jets' first round pick in 1985, the talented, rangy wideout earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 1986.

Al led all AFC wide receivers in receptions in '86, the AFC in receptions in '87, and the NFL in receptions in '88.

A 3x Pro Bowler #JetUp

[Luke Falk @coachlukefalk]

Every training camp I had at Washington State University, Coach Leach would share the same story.
The story of two kids. The rich kid and the poor kid.

The rich kid has two choices. He can become spoiled, entitled, lazy, and expect everything to be handed to him because he has been given more. Or he can take every advantage of what he has been given—resources, coaching, opportunities—and use it to become even better.

The poor kid has two choices too. He can say, “I never had a chance. Nobody gave me anything. The world is against me.” He can feel sorry for himself and use it as an excuse. Or he can say, “I may not have what they have, but I am going to outwork everybody.” He can become tougher, more driven, and more relentless than everybody else.

It was a powerful message in a locker room full of people from different backgrounds, different families, and different life experiences. Some guys came from wealth. Some came from almost nothing. Some had every opportunity. Others had to fight for every inch.

But despite all of those differences, everybody still had the same choice.

You can take ownership and use what you have as fuel.

Or you can become victim-minded. You can look for excuses, blame your circumstances, become entitled, and convince yourself that because of what you have—or because of what you do not have—you cannot become what you want to be.

It is not about how you start. It is about what you choose to do with how you start.

The rich kid can waste what he has been given or use it to build something greater. The poor kid can use his circumstances as an excuse or as fuel.

In the end, greatness does not come from starting with more or less. It comes from which person inside of you that you choose to feed.

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[crunchyrugger @crunchyrugger]

Trump: do as I say, or I will bomb you back to the stone ages

Iran: best I can do is this 10 point plan where you give us everything we want

Trump: deal!

FoxNews: Trump is a master negotiator

[Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump]

While our wonderful president was out playing golf all day, the TSA is falling apart, just like our government! Airports a total disaster!

[Jamie Dixon 💪 @JamieDixon_FIT]

I played Division II ball.
All-American. All-Decade.

I played with guys who transferred from D1 schools and they all said the same thing — the talent is better than why they thought it would be.

So when I see kids say,
“I’ll go D2, get some film, then transfer up to D1…”

I just laugh.

Division II isn’t JV, it’s not JUCO. To think you’ll make a pitstop there and dip is crazy.

Upper-tier D2 is full of grown men. 22–23 years old (now a days probably older). Four to five years deep in real strength programs. Strong. Fast. Violent.

Many of them were D1 talent who were late bloomers, undersized at 17, or just overlooked.

The gap between high-level D2 and lower-level D1? Razor thin. Sometimes nonexistent.

When I was coaching at UL I was shocked at how terrible some schools we played were (NMSU, TXState, etc).

Not all that glitters is gold.

[Next Level Baseball @nextlevelbb]

Cooper Kupp was a 0 star coming out of high school.
Cooper Kupp played college football at Eastern Washington.
Cooper Kupp has been a Super Bowl MVP.
Cooper Kupp is playing in the Super Bowl tonight.
Players
If you're genuinely willing to outwork the competition and sacrifice like a maniac.
Believe in yourself.

[Shortbox Bernie @ShortBoxBernie]

here we go!! returning to the 860 🎱👿

[CCSU Football @ccsu_fb]

Signed ✍️

Welcome to the Blue Devil Family,
@HoweAustyn

#GoBlueDevils #NSD26

[DK🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸 @1Nicdar]

130 schools said no.
He led the losingest program in college football history to a national championship anyway.
Fernando Mendoza was a 2-star recruit from Miami.

He tried to walk on at his hometown school. They passed.
So did FIU.
So did FAU.
So did everyone else.

At 17, he was sitting in his bedroom, crying over a silent recruiting inbox—after driving to 18 camps with his dad and sending highlights to more than 100 programs.
Not one FBS offer.
His only option? Yale. No scholarship. No NFL path.

Everyone told him to be “realistic.”
“Know your place.”
“Be grateful.”
He didn’t listen.
Because Mendoza understood something most people miss:
The worst outcome isn’t failing.
It’s never getting the chance to try.

Two weeks before signing day in 2022, his phone rang.
Cal needed a body. One offer. Out of 134 schools.
He took it.
He arrived as the third-string quarterback.
Spent a year on the scout team.
Lost his first four starts.
Got sacked 41 times behind a broken offensive line.

Still got up. Every time.
Then Cal brought in a transfer instead of building around him.
So Mendoza left the only school that had ever said yes.
He transferred to Indiana—the losingest program in college football history.

People laughed.
“Career suicide.”
“Graveyard program.”
“Nobody wins there.”
One coach told him something different:
“I’m going to make you the best Fernando Mendoza possible.”
That was enough.
Mendoza wasn’t just playing for football.
His mother has battled multiple sclerosis for 18 years.

Before every snap, he thought of her.
“My mother is my why.”
Indiana went 16–0.
Beat six Top-10 teams.
Won their first Big Ten title since 1945.
Mendoza threw 41 touchdowns.
Won the Heisman—first in school history.
First Cuban-American to ever do it.

Then came the title game.
Miami. Near his hometown.
Fourth-and-4. Season on the line.
Quarterback draw.
The kid 134 schools rejected spun through defenders and dove into the end zone.

Game over.
Indiana—national champions.
The losingest program became the best team in America.
All because a 17-year-old refused to believe “no” was the end.

Rankings don’t decide your ceiling.
Gatekeepers don’t write your ending.
Being overlooked isn’t a verdict—it’s a starting point.

Sometimes all you need is one shot…
and the courage to bet on yourself when nobody else will.
Don’t quit.

Credit: Barclay Mullins

[Greg Olsen @Gregor1313]

At about a year into sobriety I realized I missed the actual rituals of drinking more than the alcohol itself.

It’s not really the booze you miss anymore. It’s the evening wind-downs, a beer with friends, a cold one after yard work - wine while cooking dinner.

Those rituals were the real pull. Once you see that, you can start replacing them. You can build new wind-downs, new ways to connect with friends, new moments that feel just as rewarding—without the alcohol.

And when you do, those old triggers lose their power. You start looking forward to your new rituals instead. It’s honestly a wonderful way to live.

[Shortbox Bernie @ShortBoxBernie]

Maniac by blood 😉

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

Excited to announce I’ve received a D1 offer from the University of Maine! @CoachBrae88 @BlackBearsFB #BlackBearNation

[MaxPreps @MaxPreps]

We got ANOTHER wild ending. This time in Connecticut. Brookfield goes for 2 and the win...gets it...but then the next play Eli Rice says not so fast. @berlin_redcoats wins the CIAC Class M championship.

Might want to turn volume down just a bit. We love the energy on the @NFHSNetwork

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

D2 Transfer WR

Ready to compete at the next level!

6’1 195

120in broad
36.5in vert
315 bench
375 front squat
265 hang clean

***highlights pinned on my bio***

[Shortbox Bernie @ShortBoxBernie]

let's go!! #sfg 🎱

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

Blessed to receive a D1 offer from Wagner College @Coachjfortiz #LetsFly

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

Blessed to receive a D1 offer from The Citadel @RettRussell26 #FireThoseCannons

[Shortbox Bernie @ShortBoxBernie]

way to go #sfg 🎱

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

After a great visit and conversations with @CoachEliGardner and @CoachHebert12 I’m blessed to say I’ve received a D1 offer to Stonehill College #DIG 🪏

[Footballism @FootbaIIism]

You just had to be there

[Sickos Committee @SickosCommittee]

THE GAME WINNER FOR SOUTH DAKOTA STATE IN OT!! WHAT A GAMEEE

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

Officially in the transfer portal as a grad student with 1 year of eligibility🤞🏻

[Austyn Howe @HoweAustyn]

Transfer WR‼️
Grad student with 1 year of eligibility

6’1 195

Career Stats:
30 GP = 100 rec, 1392 yds, 12tds