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Strange times: Umenyiora takes on his former team

By WTOP Staff

PAUL NEWBERRY
AP Sports Writer

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Osi Umenyiora still goes online to play video games against his buddy Victor Cruz.

Oddly enough, their game of choice is FIFA soccer. Cruz usually takes Manchester United, while Umenyiora prefers either Chelsea or Man City.

“I’m not going to lie. He wins the majority of the time,” Cruz said. “But I come back when it matters, so I’m cool with that.”

On Sunday, they’ll be opponents in that other kind of football, in a game that really matters.

Umenyiora, who spent the first decade of his career with the New York Giants, will line up for the first time against his former team as a defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons.

It seems downright surreal to everyone involved.

Umenyiora was such a key and immensely popular member of the Giants for so long, helping the team to a pair of Super Bowl titles. He made the Pro Bowl twice and had 75 sacks during his tenure with New York, including a career-best 14.5 in 2005.

“I’m excited to see a lot of the familiar faces,” Umenyiora said. “I was there for 10 years, basically a third of my life, so I met a lot of people, have a lot of good friends there. Most of the good things in my life came from that organization.”

This certainly isn’t a case like Steve Smith, who took such pleasure in beating his former team last week. The Baltimore Ravens receiver had 139 yards receiving and two touchdowns in a 38-10 rout of Carolina, then angrily spouted that the Panthers “stabbed me in the back.”

There are no hard feelings for Umenyiora.

“I left there on really good terms with everybody,” Umenyiora said. “So I don’t have any of that, ‘I want to come back and kick the Giants in the teeth,’ stuff like that. I’ve got a job to do. We’ve got to get back to winning. We have a big one on the road this week. That’s pretty much all I’m focused on.”

Umenyiora, who turns 33 next months, hasn’t made much of an impact in his two seasons with the Falcons (2-2). While he had a team-high 7.5 sacks last season, the Falcons struggled to get pressure on the quarterback.

This season, he’s been demoted to a backup role. Umenyiora has six tackles through the first month of the season and is still looking for his first sack. He looks out of place in the Falcons’ preferred 3-4 alignment, not quite mobile enough to handle an outside linebacker role, not quite big enough to take an inside spot.

Umenyiora hopes he’ll get an opportunity to go after Giants quarterback Eli Manning, a player who was always hands-off to him in practice when he played for the Giants.

“I’ve never had a chance to get even close to him,” Umenyiora said, trying to hold back a smile.

He doesn’t really recognized these Giants (2-2), who have gone through extensive turnover the last two seasons and this year brought in a new offensive coordinator, Ben McAdoo, to install a West Coast-style offense.

Manning and the Giants struggled at first with the transition to a system that relies on quick reads and throws, losing their first two games. But they’ve scored 75 points the last two weeks, looking particularly impressive in last week’s victory at Washington.

If the Falcons tried to pick Umenyiora’s brain about what to expect from his old team, he wouldn’t have much to offer.

“I don’t know this offense at all, so there’s nothing I’ve been able to give our team,” he said. “Everything about that team looks different than when I was there.”

Well, not everything.

The Giants still have Cruz, their flashy receiver. And offensive tackle Will Beatty, a player who still speaks fondly of Umenyiora (and vice versa). They all wish they could have stuck together a little longer.

“To see Osi in a different uniform is unfortunate,” Cruz said.

Even Tom Coughlin, the Giants’ hardscrabble coach, sounded a bit moved by the thought of Umenyiora wearing red instead of blue.

“It’s still a little bit sad to see ol’ Osi over there,” Coughlin said. “He was such an integral part of our team.”

Notes: Falcons G Justin Blalock missed practice for the second day in a row. Blalock’s absence makes it increasingly likely that Atlanta will have three new starters on the offensive line against the Giants. … WR Harry Douglas, who didn’t play last Sunday against the Vikings because of a foot injury, also missed practice.

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AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL

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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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