Belichick, the evil genius in a hoodie, is considered to be one of the greatest coaching minds of his era, while Coughlin is the coach who barely escaped with his job halfway through the season until the Giants finally started winning some games.

But each coach seemed to have their own ups and downs of this game, and their hopes and fears resonated with every blow of the whistle.

You could see Belichick cringe for the first time when Brady dropped back near the 4 yard line for a pass. Brady saw pressure coming from defensive tackle Justin Tuck and knew he had to act quickly to avoid a safety. But, although he was not sacked, he was charged with intentional grounding inside the end zone. The result: a safety.

Throughout the entire game, Belichick had one huge factor working against him. Giants punter Steve Weatherford was pinning the Patriots within the 5 yard line on nearly every punt. Genius that he is, Belichick’s evil schemes only work when he is at the 20 yard line. Even a coach inspired by Satan, like Belichick, can’t engineer a drive starting from his own goal line.

By the end of the second quarter, Belichick was very close to storming off the field. So he buried his face in his hands, and let Brady get to work. By the time Belichick had looked up, Brady had thrown 10 passes and 10 completions for a total of 98 yards to score a go-ahead touchdown with around a dozen seconds left.

Coughlin had a different perspective on the game than Belichick. It seemed as if he was on his heels the entire time, trying to keep up with the hoodied menace that was his nemesis.

Unlike Belichick, however, Coughlin had multiple runningbacks who could do more than block for their quarterback. Most notable of those runningbacks was Brandon Jacobs, who, coming at 6 foot 4 inches and 265 pounds, is a human battering ram, and the gate he knocked down time and time again was the Patriots front seven, who had no chance to stop Jacobs.

The Giants defense gave Coughlin the necessary breathing room that kept him from getting claustrophobic. Pierre-Paul, the defensive tackle for the Giants, was making life for Brady a nightmare. He had multiple blocks and was giving continued pressure and hits on Brady. The announcers, namely Al Michaels, eventually agreed that “he is not a normal human being.”

Coughlin’s impotence was first noted at the beginning of the second half when Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was given one-one coverage against run-defending linebacker Chase Blackburn. Hernandez made a single quick move, leaving Blackburn in the dust and himself dancing in the end zone with a football in his hand.

While Belichick was doing his secretive evil laugh, Coughlin was scratching his head while every coach in the world was saying, “Who puts a big and slow linebacker on one of the premier tight ends in the league?” The answer to that question is an idiot–also known as Tom Coughlin.

But Coughlin is no normal idiot–he is a lucky idiot. Chase Blackburn was again assigned to cover an extremely agile receiver, but this time, the Giant’s defensive line pressured Brady and his deep throw over the head of Blackburn was delayed for just enough time to allow Blackburn to get in the lane of the throw and intercept the ball. That was the first and only turnover of the game.

Coughlin’s luck continued and so did Belichick’s woes, until the final score of the game revealed the Giants as the winner of Super Bowl XLVI, by a score of 21-17. Looks like Belichick will be going back to his evil laboratory, and Brady to his cologne commercials. Congratulations to Manning and the rest of the Giants for a great season, and congratulations to Coughlin for keeping his job.

The curtains open to the porch of the Mitchell household, where the lovebirds Ann Mitchell (junior Amanda Spielman) and Kevin Fredricks (junior Tom Rigodonzo) are perplexed about letting Ann’s parents know about their relationship with each other.

In the meantime, Ann’s mother, Donna Mitchell (senior Christine Do), is quickly preparing for the arrival of her superstar mother Penny Loring (senior Anna Tahran). When Penny enters the house, she reminisces about the memories she has growing up in the Roaring Twenties and reflects on the time when she decides to make a name for herself by becoming an actress. She rejects the man she loves, Edward Garrison (junior Devan Tormey), because she has aspiring dreams. Broken Box members bring these memories to life by re-enacting them in a vivid and engaging manner.

Meanwhile, Ann pops the question to her mother, who is astonished and does not approve. She voices her side of the story by claiming that it’s too young to become committed–an action that she regrets in her own ife.

The audience follows back to another flashback as Donna reminisces about how she became committed too quickly with Tommy (senior Johnny Hendriquez), who died in the army and left her a single mother. Afraid that her daughter will be left in the situation she found herself, she denies Kevin and Ann’s love.

The audience is quick to notice the differences between the daughter and mother–while Donna believes in staying true to the past and living her life dedicated to her family, Penny believes in making a name for herself and becoming an actress. Penny goes through four divorces and travels frequently for her demanding career.

The rest of the play focuses on how Ann and Kevin decide what’s right for them and attempt to obtain the approval of Ann’s parents. It highlights the idea of compromise and responsibility, as well as the relationships between mother and daughter throughout the generations.

The Broken Box Theatre Company has done an excellent job in creating this production and bringing it to life. Broken Box teacher Nancy Moran has directed yet another superb show, while senior Annalise Tahran delivered an outstanding performance as the lavish Penny in the 70s. Senior Laura Delamare played Penny in the 20s and junior Nikki Kashani played Penny in the 50s. Both did an amazing job in painting a vivid portrait of her character and revealing the progression in attitude throughout the years.

Every member in Broken Box has put in a lot of effort in order to make this play successful. So if you want to travel back in time along with the Broken Box crew, watch “Never Mind What Happened, How Did it End?” and find yourself entertained.

The Eagles played one of their best games of the year. LAHS came charging into the field with lots of energy and confidence, and maintained total control of the game from beginning to end.

The key factors that led the Eagles to win this match were their work effort and teamwork. LAHS constantly created space and scoring opportunities with excellent passing, ball control and game vision all throughout the game. The Eagles set the pace and forced Gunn adjust their tactics and game plan, which was critical for the Eagle win.

“I think the team played with a lot of heart and effort giving their all to win,” senior Harry Rojas said.

Although the Titans didn’t show any threats of scoring as the game played out, The Eagles continued their strong and aggressive style of play even after their 2-0 lead. Senior Omri Fried provided the goals for the Eagles. Bench players contributed by playing just as well as the starters and did not let the Titans have ball possession.

“We dominated the game and kept the ball possession at all times, which made us very successful,” Harry said.

Students were taken to the Mountain View City Hall for the opening reception. Mountain View Youth Resources Manager Kim Castro, Mountain View City Manager Daniel Rich and Mountain View Chamber of Commerce CEO Oscar Garcia gave opening presentations that primarily presented students with information regarding the city of Mountain View as well as what each individual’s respective jobs were.

Afterward, students broke up into smaller groups and met their shadows for two hours. Students shadowed individuals from sectors such as Performing Arts, Parks and Recreation, the Chamber of Commerce, the Police Department and more.

“I learned a lot about the area and what you need to have to go into it,” senior Maxine Tsang said. “I didn’t know a lot about architecture and now I do.”

Senior Patrick Maningo, a former LAHS student, along with junior Nevin San and senior Kenny Anderson, demonstrated a variety of spins and kicks in the quad during lunch.

The game started off evenly, and neither team was able to break into the other’s offensive half. LAHS picked up momentum slowly, and 10 minutes into the first half drove down the field after an ankle-breaking juke by mid-fielder junior Sydney Carr.

The offensive opportunity resulted in two corners and an overall excellent scoring opportunity for the Eagles; however, the team wasn’t able to capitalize.

MVHS quickly responded in a long free kick, which was deflected to the sideline by a diving save. After a few breakaways, the Spartans were steadily building momentum.

The Eagles then brought pressure and relentlessly shelled the MVHS goalie. After a few failed clears, MVHS was still unable to shake off the Eagles’ attack. Sophomore Julia Goupil cut through the defensive and delivered a cross to freshman Allie Crum, who buried it to give the team a 1-0 lead.

The Spartans delivered a silencing blow only 30 seconds later, putting away a corner kick to tie up the game. The teams went into halftime tied up.

A few minutes into the second half, the Spartans drove one home to take a 2-1 lead. They didn’t relinquish it for the rest of the game. Despite a few strong drives by the Eagles, they were unable to respond.

While the close game showed an improvement over the team’s previous matchup with MVHS, when the team lost 0-3, the team would have liked to come away with the win.

“[Coach Armando Luna’s] trying to push us to be better, because he knows that we can play better than we are playing right now,” junior Mia Venuti said.

The Eagles will face off against Gunn this Friday, February 3.

Club members were pleased with the fundraiser’s success.

“We had this bake sale to raise money for materials that we’re going to need to do fun creative projects during club meetings,” Co-president sophomore Kathryn Shawcase said.

Following this bake sale, the club is planning on doing other fundraisers in the future.

“We definitely need to keep track of all the money because a lot of our activities are going to need materials,” Kathryn said.

The club hopes that by the end of the year, LAHS students will be aware of all the different opportunities the fashion industry has to offer.

The varsity boys basketball team defeated Monta Vista 46-41 today, February 1. Though parts of the game became extremely close, the Eagles maintained overall control and got the win.

The key to this game was in the beginning, as the Eagles were able to accomplish their goal of the season: starting the game off early.

“Starting out intense has been a problem for us this year,” junior Nate Becker said. “We came out right away and got a lead, which really helped us win this game.”

The first quarter was a really strong quarter for the Eagles. Monta Vista was not making many field goals due to tight defense and pressure on the inside.The Eagles pushed Monta Vista to shoot outside, low percentage shots. However, in the last minute of the first quarter, Monta Vista drained two three-pointers, putting the Eagles only up 12-11 by the end of the first quarter.

LAHS quickly scored six points within the starting minutes of the second quarter. Quick passes and well-executed plays allowed for timely and precise shots. Senior Simon Rosenbaum was able to draw many fouls and punish Monta Vista with free throws, but, once again, Monta Vista squeezed the LAHS lead to only three points.

That three-point lead stayed throughout most of the third quarter, though the game became more physical and more fast paced. Senior Josh Tabula was called for a foul when a player on Monta Vista jumped on him. LAHS brought the game to a four-point lead by the end of the third quarter.

The Eagles stretched the lead to 10 points in the 4th quarter with 4 minutes left in the game. Sophomore Steven Garverick had crucial offensive rebounds to maintain the offensive possessions and giving the team more chances to score.

With two minutes left in the fourth quarter, LAHS found itself in foul trouble, as unintentional fouls brought the lead down to only five. Though Monta Vista held a tight defense, the Eagles held their ground and managed to seal the deal and get the win.

The Eagles will play their next game on Friday, February 3, scheduled away at 7:45 p.m. against Fremont High School.

Although the MVHS soccer team had a serious size advantage, the Eagles weren’t intimidated and held their own throughout the game. Heavy student support from LSU also encouraged the team throughout the match, giving the Eagles motivation to fight through the size difference.

The teams were closely matched, and neither team was able to take command through the first half. Several clutch saves by senior Lucas Champenois helped the Eagles stay in the game, and although both sides had their chances, neither team could capitalize.

“It’s always a hard match when we play MVHS,” Lucas said. “It’s just an intense rivalry … it doesn’t matter how the teams have been doing throughout the season, whenever MVHS plays LAHS it’s a tough game.

It wasn’t until the final 10 minutes of the game that the Eagles broke the silence with a goal fired from the top of the box, which was the result of scramble for possession at the eighteen. With less than 10 minutes left in the game and a 1-0 lead, it seemed that LAHS would have the game wrapped up.

However, with less than a minute on the clock, the Spartans, determined to score the equalizer, drove down the field. After a quick through ball to what appeared to be an offsides player, they were able to put one in the back of the net to tie up the game 1-1.

“In the end they got a goal back, but they really … had to fight for the goal and we had to fight to not give it to them and I think … the work ethic was great,” Lucas said.

As a result of the size difference in the game, LAHS’s attacks through the air weren’t effective in the matchup, and the team was forced to play a more ground-based game. In addition, shaky calls from referees affected both teams, leading to a few questionable plays.

However, all in all, both teams were well-matched and the final result was a definite improvement over the Eagles’ 0-1 loss to Mountain View earlier in the season.

The Eagles will face off against Gunn this Friday, February 3.

In a low-scoring night, LAHS kept up with Monta Vista all throughout the game. Both teams played exceptional defense through all four quarters, with aggressive rebounding and forced outside shots.

“We wanted intensity on both ends of the floor, [so] we came out with that mindset tonight,” Coach Kevin Lee said. “We knew they were going to be a smaller team with excellent shooters, so we knew we had to get out on all of their shooters.”

By doing so, the Eagles took away the offense Monta Vista was used to, leading them to force other shots that were well defended. The Eagles also showed intensity on the other side of the floor, with offensive rebounds that gave them second-chance points to stay close in the game.

LAHS used an aggressive playing style to draw fouls in the fourth quarter. Junior Ideen Seyed banked two free-throws within the last five seconds of regulation to put the game in overtime.

It was then that the Eagles ran out of gas. The Matadors finally found a way to get open shooters and make jump shots that put the Eagles away, leaving them scoreless in overtime.

“Our mindset was to get a win tonight for sure,” Lee said. “We had our girls focused on defensive intensity, really playing hard and executing on offense, but unfortunately we came up short in points.”

LAHS’s next challenge will be a re-match against the Freemont Firebirds in an away game this Friday, February 3. The Eagles beat the Firebirds 41-37 at home earlier this season.

[Photos by Amelia Evard]