Good morning!

Sometimes one story becomes something completely different. A case in point is the Westfield State football team. The Owls haven’t had a winning season since 2009, but what caught my eye was the number of Franklin County athletes who’ve gone through the pipeline.

Three locals are in WSU’s Hall of Fame, Greenfield natives Tim Peters and David Kaczenski and the Powertown’s Chris Lapointe, who will be inducted next month.

Peters lives in Boca Raton and recruits talent for an Atlanta-based corporation. He graduated from WSU in 1994 and starred in football and track and field. Kaczenski graduated in 1983 and was an All-American javelin thrower. He lives in Northfield and is the executive director of the Mass. Rural Water Association.

Lapointe is a member of the Massachusetts State Police assigned to District Attorney Dave Sullivan’s office. In 2001 he guided the Owls to a 10-0 season and set records for most touchdown passes in a game, season and career. Injuries prevented him from posting comparable numbers in following seasons. “Broke my wrist, broke my hand, missed eight games,” he said. “Oh, to have it back.”

Kevin Piecuch, the head pro at the Country Club of Greenfield, is also in WSU’s Hall of Fame. A Ludlow native, his Hall of Fame bio begins, “The most prolific golfer in the history of WSU.”

South Deerfield’s Kevin Wesoloski might get the HOF nod one of these years. In 1991 he set season records that still stand for yards gained passing and total offense.

While we’re at it, let’s mention the local players on this year’s football team: Jake Dodge and Ethan Russell (Frontier), Kyle Dodge (TFHS), Robbie Nelson (Athol), Dominic Carme (TFHS) and Andrew Shaw (Tech).

Lapointe will be inducted on Oct. 15 at the Scanlon Banquet Hall, together with five other student athletes. Apologies to those whose names aren’t included in this story, because there are undoubtedly more who desrve mention.

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Buckland resident Terry McConnell will be at the Greenfield YMCA to discuss his book Breaking Through the Line, Bobby Marshall, the N.F.L.’s First Black American Player (Nodin Press, $19.95).

Marshall was born in Milwaukee in 1880 and died in Minneapolis in 1958 at age 78. A two-time All American at Minnesota, he was a man of many firsts — the first African American to letter in the Big Ten, the first Black Minnesotan to play semi-pro hockey, and the first Black man to coach at a Minnesota high school.

He was 40 years old when he played for the Rock Island Independents, a founding NFL franchise. On Sept. 26, 1920, they beat the St. Louis Ideals, 48-0, in what’s been recognized as the NFL’s inaugural game.

McConnell, who was born and raised near Detroit, spent seven years researching and writing his book. The genesis for his work was his grandfather O.C. Olsen, who managed a pro football team called the Minneapolis Deans. “I grew up hearing stories about the great African American player, and going through some family albums I found a team photo. My grandfather was in the same row as Bobby Marshall, and it began my journey into the story of this amazing sports hero as well as a journey into my own family roots.”

McConnell and other local authors will be in the Y’s Community Room at 10 a.m. on Oct. 2.

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TRIVIA: Name the only player from among the Red Sox, Yankees or Blue Jays who has played in every game this season.

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The UMass football team hasn’t recorded an interception in nine games. Sophomore Josh Wallace was the last to do it against Northwestern on Nov. 16, 2019. Since then opposing quarterbacks have thrown 230 passes without a pick, including 87 attempts this season.

The streak will likely continue today at No. 17 Coastal Carolina. Chanticleers quarterback Grayson McCall — the 2020 Sunbelt Conference Player of the Year — leads the FBS in completion percentage (78 percent) and has one interception in 59 passes this season.

The undefeated Chanticleers (3-0) are 36-point favorites. … The Minutemen are No. 6 in CBS Sports’ Bottom 25 composed by Tom Fornelli. “The Minutemen have covered in two straight games, that’s practically a winning streak,” he writes. … The announced attendance for last week’s 42-28 loss to Eastern Michigan was 7,012. They’d draw more if marketing respected the paying customers’ musical tastes and lay off the ear-shattering hip hop music.

 UMass in the NFL: Dolphins rookie offensive linem an Larnel Coleman had knee surgery three weeks ago and is out for the season. … Wide receiver Andy Isabella caught COVID-19 during the preseason and is buried on the Arizona Cardinals depth chart. … Former UMass wideout Tajae Sharpe caught one pass for eight yards during Atlanta’s loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday.

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SQUIBBERS: Aaron Rodgers is growing his hair long for Halloween, explaining his character is “a hero of mine with longish hair.” Sandor Clegane would fit the bill, considering Rodgers is a Game of Thrones fan. … Those ugly yellow-and-blue uniforms the Red Sox are wearing are part of a Nike promotion that connects the team with the Boston Marathon. I didn’t know there was a connection. … Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton are the first Yankees since Mantle and Maris to hit 30 home runs in the same season. …. UMass will pay URI $350,000 and Maine $300,000 to play at McGuirk Alumni Stadium in November, according to herosports.com. …Stony Brook got $625,000 to play the Oregon Ducks last Saturday in Eugene. The Ducks won, 48-7. … Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few was busted for DUI in Coeur D’Alene three weeks ago. Few had had a few. … Trivia Answer: Toronto second baseman Marcus Semien. … Yankees infielder Rougned Odor is 2-for-39 with 18 strikeouts since August 18. … What’s a Goober? An Uber app for golfers. … A Boston College cop stood outside the visitors locker room in Amherst and pondered the suggestion that no one was upset after former coach Steve Addazio got axed. “You said it. I’m not going to disagree with what you said, I might agree with what you said, but you said it.” … During NESN’s pregame show on Tuesday, Mo Vaughn and Jim Rice took the analytic geeks to task for creating a lazy all-or-nothing baseball culture, and bemoaned the absence of managers who used discipline to motivate. “Casey Stengel, Billy Martin, Chuck Tanner, Jim Leyland, those guys are gone,” said Rice. … As for the Mets’ dreadful season, Vaughn urged owner Steve Cohen to hire an old school manager and play baseball, “the old style way.” … At halftime in Tampa on Sunday, Bucs sideline reporter DJ Reeves caught up to coach Bruce Arians. “Coach what are you happiest about on offense?” asked Reeves. “Not a damn thing,” answered Arians. “This should be a 35-point game at the half. We’re not happy about s***.”