#dan hager

[theecoreport]

Documenting The Central Walbran Valley

Documenting The Central Walbran Valley

The ECOreport reposts another of Daniel J Pearce’s productions, this time documenting the Central Walbran Valley

Originally Published on Ramshackle Pictures

By Daniel J Pearce

The early 1990s was a pivotal time for the forest industry and for forest activism in British Columbia. Massive demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience resulted in hundreds of arrests in Clayoquot Sound in response to…

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[warsawscountrycourier]

Buffalo Bills sign Letchworth grad to practice squad

By Dan Hager 

A Letchworth graduate with NFL dreams has received a chance to have a career as a professional football player.

Last spring, Derek Buttles returned home to Letchworth with his degree from the University of Maine in construction management – and received some promising news with an invite to the Buffalo Bills 2012 rookie mini-camp. However, Buttles did not get an invitation to the Bills training camp at St. John Fisher in Rochester this past summer, but he continued to bulk up and stay active with a hope that the phone might ring again.

Just before Christmas, that phone rang and the Bills offering Buttles a shot, signing the tight end to the team's practice squad. With the season-ending injury to starting tight end Scott Chandler, the Bills needed tight end depth at practice, and Buttles offered just that.  And while the 2012 season is over for the Bills, just that one phone call might be enough to open the doors for Buttles in the years ahead.

“Just a shot is a special thing for all of us here in Letchworth,” said Letchworth Head Coach Tim McMullen. “Derek is a great story for any school, county or league. He is the complete package for a wide-out/tight end combo. He has great hands and is very athletic.”

A 2007 Letchworth graduate, Buttles spent his college career in Maine playing offense for the Black Bears. After finally gaining some major momentum in his senior season,  with a career-high 148-yard day receiving against PITT, Buttles suffered through an ACL tear, ending his season and his momentum.

In 2010, Buttles earned second-team All-Colonial Athletic Association honors after catching 27 passes for 291 yards and a touchdown.

While in high school, Buttles was named the Livingston County News Athlete of the Year in 2006-07 after leading the LCAA in tackles with 152. He also earned the Section 5 Class C Defensive player of the year that season.

After months of rehab the shot the Bills provided in the spring was enough to keep the 6-foot-5, 230-pound Buttles in the weight room and working for the ultimate goal of making the NFL.

Even if his time with the Bills lasted only two weeks, Derek Buttles is the lone Letchworth graduate to wear an NFL jersey, making the number 88 one to remember in Gainesville.

[warsawscountrycourier]

From the Press Box: Unpredictable Bills prepare for biggest test yet

By Dan Hager

It was unclear just what the Buffalo Bills would be as they entered this season. With a revamped defensive line, some talented rookies on both sides of the ball and a quarterback who the majority of people outside the organization were a bit skeptical to get behind, no one knew what to expect when September arrived.

That remains the case following the team’s 24-14 win Sunday over the Cleveland Browns as the Bills improved to 2-1 on the season. The defensive line has been getting better, finishing with nine sacks in the last two games but the secondary remains an issue with opposing QBs still getting the ball out quickly to avoid Mario Williams and Mark Anderson.

The QB situation is exactly what people thought – worrisome – while at the same time, Ryan Fitzpatrick continues to get the job done, throwing eight touchdowns after three interceptions against the Jets to start the year. A big reason for that turnaround, however, falls on the shoulders of emerging running back C.J. Spiller.

Against a team other than the Browns, the Bills’ lead could have disappeared. Oh wait – it nearly did, when Cleveland pulled within three points in the fourth quarter.

Then the confusing really set in for Bills fans. The offense started its engine back up and finished off a big drive with a touchdown pass from Fitzpatrick to Stevie Johnson, securing the win and preparing the Bills for a showdown with the New England Patriots.

This is the game where we really have a chance to see what this Bills team has become.

Will we chalk week one up to a lack of chemistry mixed with an unblemished game plan from the Jets coaching staff, or will Bills fans be reminded of Tom Brady’s Hall of Fame statistics?  Remember that a good majority of Brady’s stats have been put up against the Bills.

So it remains unclear just what this team is and what it is going to become. We should all know more by Sunday evening but as we have learned in the past – like last year’s win over New England – there is no telling what might be in this team’s future.

[warsawscountrycourier]

From the Press Box: Bills run all over the Chiefs

By Dan Hager

After seemingly trying to spread the ball out at the Meadowlands last week, the Buffalo Bills’ offense revolved around the run in a rout of the Kansas City Chiefs in Week Two.

Behind a stellar performance by CJ Spiller, the Bills’ running game was a key fixture in Sunday’s win and one the Buffalo faithful wouldn’t mind seeing throughout the regular season.

Spiller finished with 123 yards on 15 carries and two touchdowns with an average of 8.2 yards per carry. He is currently the NFL’s leading rusher and is showing why he was drafted No. 9 overall three years ago.

The big change comes in the confidence of head coach Chan Gailey, who saw Spiller run all over his defense as a member of the Clemson Tigers while coaching at Georgia Tech.

Gailey seemingly wanted to run the ball against the Chiefs, something we have seen very little of during his two-year career in Buffalo, where he has compiled a record of 10-23.  Gailey used Spiller all over the field on Sunday, even calling his number in passing game on three occasions. 

As a team the Bills rushed for 201 yards behind an offensive line that is both mean and aggressive. With athletic lineman who can move around, open up holes and then get downfield to block cornerbacks, this is a team that can surely run the football.

So what does this mean about Gailey’s offense?  Where do Ryan Fitzpatrick and Stevie Johnson fit into this equation? And what about Fred Jackson?

These are all great problems to have, making the Bills’ offense a very potent attack.  While Fitzpatrick might not be the 300-yard, three-touchdown-QB we all dream of, he is a perfect candidate to run an offense that revolves around the run.

Fitzpatrick will make the throw when he needs to, and when the pressure is off and the offense revolves around the running game, he can take advantage of a defense with eyes elsewhere. That was shown on Sunday when Fitzpatrick had a very good game, tossing two touchdowns and no picks in a dominating win over the Chiefs.

Mix Jackson into that equation, and this running attack could become memorable. 

Not getting ahead of ourselves is always difficult, but with a strong running game and an improved defensive front, anything can happen.

We will see what the game plan is on Sunday in Cleveland, but it is easy to guess that Bills fans alike are calling for the run and Spiller is ready to show us all a little more.