inside pressbox is presented by freedmont mortgage. don't make a 30 year mistake by churessing the wrong lender. go to freed month.com now for your mortgage needs >> i'm stan "the fan" charles. 8th division 3 mention basketball programs will kick off their seasons this tuesday night with the pride of maryland basketball tournament. the only school to tip-off with a new school is with gary

stewart who comes with a division i background. he will be here to talk about it. we'll also, welcome home an iraqi war veteran whose day job is talking sports. everyone knows the story. he is back on 105.7. the fan will welcome him back later in the show but first on december 3rd the infield of plymly co race course will be transformed once, again, this time a full flag football tournament and festival of all things football. here to talk about the baltimore flag football festival is scott of a sg sports. we have known each other a long time. >> good to see you. >> good to see you. this is a new event for you? >> yes. you're used to seeing me with soccer oh fish yen that dough.

>> you do things with grassroots parties pa foresports. we resurrected this from 12 years ago. >> when did that -- where did that take place? >> no. we did it on the grounds of potomac polo fields in maryland. we did one at the national mall and on the grounds of the old capitol center which at the time made the transition into the u.s.a. rena. >> that is a long time. >> yes. >> tem us about this flag football and this event. you have teams. you know you have a bunch of teams coming on december 3rd. you still have room for more teams. you have room for individuals but this thing is growing to where you really want people just to come out and sit down and have food, music. >> have a good time. one of the things not having a football team during that time,

they missed a lot of the get out in the community type things, the sand lot type football so the flag football brings that back in, a lot of purple passion in time. hopefully, we'll have that on december 3rd. teams from social sports teams to some x professionals playing in the games. >> now how does it break down? are there different classifications of teams? >> absolutely. >> by age and talent level? >> age, gender, talent level, we're saying the social or pros and the elites or the socials and the joes and elites art pros there. >> is there room for a guy like mark zin know to get in? >> he is a legend in his own mind. >> it is beyond his own mind there. we would love to have him out ner. he said he might have some pent

up aggression. >> we haven't insurance. >> we have a tournament for money. we just involved the kick ball league of baltimore and their constituents. we have the baltimore botchy league that will show people how to play botchy ball, but the corn hole is through mid- atlantic corn hole and they are the best for what they do. they are putting up cash. >> dr. pepper stepped up in a big way. you're wearing the colors. >> absolutely. >> they take care of us, we take care of them. >> a lot of other font source. pepsi, miller light, sports authority, studio 83. a lot of different folks involved with this. but one of the important things you're doing is you're also raising money. >> with the toys for tots program here in baltimore a

portion of the team registration will go back to toys for tots. you talked about other people coming out and watching the event. it is free. we are asking that you bring a toy or donation. it is free for spectators to come in. if you're going to play in the turn. there is a preregistration, it will be open through the week of december 3rd. a lot of the advertising is just now hitting and quite a few people have already signed up and we'll have a good turnout. >> do you know how many teams you have sonar? >> so far 60, 70. we're looking to get to the 100 mark. the last time we did it in dc we were over the 220 team mark which was a few years of growing this. this is a first year event. they have been very accommodating getting something going in the infield there. the infrastructure is there, free parking, admission is

free. miller light beer garden. free live music. it sounds like a great event. be more flag.com is the website. you can see it now. baltimore flag football festival 2011 brought to you by doctor pepper. part of the proceeds go for toys for tots. if people are interesting informing a team or letting you know they are available as individuals how do they do that? >> be more flag.com or call. we would be happy to walk you through the process. not only can teams participate, we're looking for freeagents so if someone is not going to pick up a team, we'll pick them up as a free agent. >> plenty of medical care. he has been pent up there for a little while, we might have to call in a thoughts u coor. >> scott wes co we appreciate.

>> december 3rd flag football festival. pressbox and sports authority are celebrating youth sports but we need your help. it could win you unbelievable discounts at sports authority for that entire youth organization. go to pressboxonline.com for all the details. ♪

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join pressbox at the stolely touch down zone at sharp before every ravens home game. go to pressboxonline.com now for complete details. and welcome back to inside pressbox presented by freedmont mortgage. mark has been covering sports in baltimore for many years on 105.7 the fan but for most of the 2011 his reports came from thousands of miles away in the desert -- from the desert sands

of iraq. he is here in baltimore. mark, thank you for your service and welcome. it is great to see you again. >> thank you very much. it is great to be back in baltimore city one more time. >> monday, i watch, i don't often get out for the conference bees but after the pittsburgh game i always turn him on on comcast sportsnet and i mixed the name but john hard ball says hey we want to welcome back and i didn't hear the name. we thank you for your service and welcome home and i think he shrouded you, but he was talking about you. he opened his press conference. did that blow you away a little bit? >> it does. on my way out the door of my press conference last season he went out of his way to say i'm doing great things and he acknowledged me on my first day

back. it's not only speaks to the classy individuals he is, but the way he runs the organization and the values that are important to him and the things that make the ravens a great organization. it was great to see that in front of all my peers and in the city of baltimore for my service and that is something i will never forget. >> do you feel you're on a different level with the media? >> no. we're all grinding the same things so to speak to cover sports. maybe i'm a little more recognizable for what i have done, but if john har ball goes out of his way to thank me and if anyone else put on a uniform and did the same thing, it isn't something he acknowledge led me other than the fact that part of my life is to put on my uniform armed serve my country. it is nice to know he

recognizes it. >> you have done two tours of duty over there. 2005, 2006, 2011. do you see much of a difference? >> there is a world of difference. one of the first thing i did was driving around baghdad on the compound we're on to look and see what was out there and see what had changed and what had stayed the same. some things changed for the better and other things have gotten worse but you think about it we had the surge averaged 150,000 troops there and five years have gone by. katie couric took aliking to me. i have to say no. we had a lot of special people come by and a lot of people who visited us. everybody from william gates when he was secretary of defense and katy couric.

they have tour, that come through and that is great to see. none of those people ever have to take time out of the their schedules to do it. the coach coming up. he went on a trip overseas. that is something fantastic. the people that choose to do that, they don't have to. it is not a vacation. it is not club med. >> but it is there way of donating service. >> absolutely. and again, little things like that when you get to shake hands with a professional athlete that comes over or whoever who takes time to greet you and takes a picture with you, you remember that for the rest of your life. >> what was moral like when you heard the news that they had gotten osama bin laden? , not just you, but within your theater of operations so to seek. >> everyone was a little elated. that was a crazy day for me.

the first question i got was are you coming home now? >> that was in afghanistan not iraq so no, i'm not coming home but there was so much pride in america and so much people wanted to know. i did radio interviews front all over the country that day about bin laden being killed and it was along, hard ten years of a lot of work of a lot of people. yeah, there were only a select few of those navy seals that got to do that special job and those guys are the best of the best. there is no finer fighting force and those guys together did the job they were asked to do, but a lot of people on the course of the way put their part of the pie no matter how small. it was a co lab rative effort. when we found out it was just, you feel a sense of pride that

hey, you know what? even if my piece was only minis cool, it was my piece and it mattered. >> we're almost out of time. i'm have you back on again whenever you want to come on. how did you follow sports over there? we have about 45 seconds. >> the internet is the easiest way. they broadcast a lot. we're 7 hours ahead. you get to watch some hours a life but 8:00 p.m. on the east coast is 3:00 a.m. in iraq so you have to get up early but the internet is the best way to go and thank god this time around there is a lot more access than my first tower. it helps boost moral. >> welcome back. we appreciate your service. next time we'll just talk some sports. >> fair enough. thanks for having me. >> mark splin no, one of the best. we welcome our friends.

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see the best of division 3 mention basketball throughout the state at the pride of maryland tournament proudly

sponsored by the maryland lottery. go to pride of maryland.com now for the complete schedule. >> the basketball turn the tips off on tuesday. this is earth first year coach of one of the school's stevenson university mustangs and their head man is with us. that is gary stewart. thanks for coming in very much. got to correct myself right away. i said who do you play and you said salisbury state at salisbury. >> they have a first year new coach. i alluded to you as the only new coach. >> he is smart and bright and a hard worker. >> what kind of job is gary stewart going to do? >> i don't care about josh merkel this second we have been given some really good things at steve ventilate son to have a terrific program. we have great leadership with

kevin manning and our cfo tim campbell. they are terrific. the people that i work with paul and brett, 17 years ars the head basketball coach and athletic director. i am surrounded with really great innovative, smart people and i'm excited about the opportunity. >> the first thing that came to my mind when i saw, i said oh, high hired a guy named gary stewart and he is moving back to 3. then i was reading comments that brett adams made about you. you played division iii. he said he feels although you spent time in each division that your heart is in division iii. what is the difference between your heart being in 3, 2, or 1 my original thought process when i left 3 was to get experience. i was 24 when i got my first

job and 8 years later division head coach. then kind of started on a division i track and it was a learning experience for me. i longed to get back to division iii because i believe in the mission. i believe in the student athlete experience of division iii and had such a terrific experience as a student and as a coach. >> do you think and i know the timing of this question is going to be a little sensitive, you know, the things that happened at penn state, i'm not comparing. that doesn't happen at all division i schools but nobody is getting out of kilter with the division iii of what@let text are about. >> no. division iii you have to believe in a model. you have to believe in the goals and aspirations set for the by the powers to be to work

and sustain longevity at this level and if you look at the coaches across the country that have a man on the sidelines or the women who have done such a great job at division iii it is incredible the level. it is true amateur rhythm and it is really the essence of the student first. >> there is something to be said in light of all the scandals that are going on in division i. >> the tournament coming up. you open at salisbury. you don't know a whole lot about them. they don't know a lot about you, do they? >> well, we're in an information period here, stan, so you would be surprised. i know they are going to be prepared and we will, too. we expect a hard fought game and it's always is. i don't think it will be any different on tuesday. >> you like this format don't

you to start the season off? you get 3 quick games in within 5, 6 days. not a lot of travel but you get 3 quick games in and you can measure yourself. >> i think it is one of the best in college basketball. you have the only state championship on any level where all the schools get together and fight it out and at least get to wear that for a year before you have to work doing it again. >> tell me about when you came to campus. you got to see -- how many coaches division iii get to come in and see a new arena, you gym, and a new football stadium all like right next to each other. pretty impressive. >> it really is. again, it speaks to our leadership again, dr. manning, tim campbell, brett adams works so hard. paul, kathy. >> brett adams works too hard.

>> yes. >> he makes too much money, works too hard. >> what you find about the people, they are passionate about their work. they work their dreams. a lot of people have a vision for what they want to do. they set out to work that vision and accomplish the goals and it is a really progressive place, real exciting time to be there. i feel very for the nat. >> we wish you look. we'll have you back on again. >> stan, thanks for having me. >> great to get to know you. gary stewart men's basketball coach at stephenson university. man: my electric bill was breaking the bank.

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inside pressbox is presented by freedmont mortgage. go to freed month.com for all your mortgage needs. >> before we wrap things unless' take a look at the photo of the week. as always it is brought to you by yuengling logger true american classic. >> after a month long search, they introduced him as their executive vice president of baseball om races on tuesday. that is by sa bena moran. see more photos from the press conference and read thought about his new job. that wraps us up for another edition of pressbox presented by freedmont mortgage.