In a case of “Where Are They Now?” former St. Peter’s College basketball standout Scott Weeden is now enjoying life as an entrepreneur in the world of sporting goods.
Weeden, who played for the Peacocks in the early 1990s, has launched a new line of sports apparel with his new company, called “Saiphs,” (pronounced SAFES) named after a star in the constellation of Orion.
Weeden, who now resides in Orlando, has been working on launching the website for over a year.
“It’s superior athletic wear,” Weeden said. “It’s superior athletic wear for the serious athlete who wants to protect, improve and build his body to the ultimate. It’s athletic gear that keeps you warm, keeps sweat away from your body and promotes blood flow to the muscles.”
Some of Weeden’s clothing includes compression tights, long-sleeved compression shirts and others.
Weeden launched the website just two weeks ago, but he has been hard at work getting the company going.
“I had athletes from the professional ranks testing the gear,” Weeden said. “We had players from the Steelers, Patriots, and Chiefs testing our line all summer and they loved it. At first, they were a little skeptical, but after they tried it and saw that it kept the sweat away and kept their muscles in place, they were all for it.”
Weeden said that his gear was purchased this fall by Atlantic City High School and that Liberty University will debut the Saiphs line this weekend.
Also, former Peacock star Keydren “Kee-Kee” Clark, the school’s all-time leading scorer, is wearing the Saiphs line as he plays professional basketball in Italy.
Weeden said that he spent a month recently in the Dominican Republic at the Saiphs factory insuring that the product would be ready when the line was launched. Weeden and his partner, Jon Miller, are going to keep the product strictly online for the time being instead of dealing with retail outlets and stores.
“I’m excited and ecstatic about it,” Weeden said. “When the website finally came up, it was a relief, because we’ve been working on it for a year. But people have already been hitting the site and things are good.”
Weeden said that Saiphs is going after the market that before recently was dominated by Under Armor.
“We’re going right after them,” Weeden said. “Last week, we were No. 1 online for compression gear, so we’re excited and moving in the right direction.”
To learn more about Weeden’s company, log on to www.saiphs.com…
Received two interesting e-mails from concerned parents after last week’s Scoreboard column about the High Tech/County Prep athletic demise and the transfer of some student/athletes back and forth.
Both e-mails were not complimentary at all about the position taken here. In fact, one went as far as to accuse this columnist for “having the NJSIAA rulebook in your back pocket.” The other believed that the column was actually supporting the NJSIAA and the 30-day transfer rule.
Let’s clarify for a second. In no way, shape or form does this columnist applaud what has taken place with this situation. From the outset, it’s been stated that the ones getting the major shaft here are the kids themselves. No one thought about them at all when the final blow was delivered and those programs were eliminated. That was the shame of it all.
But should kids be allowed to bounce back and forth to different schools, simply to be eligible to play? No, not one bit. Where’s the education value there? After all, that’s what is the primary reason here – to educate young people, not simply worrying whether they’re going to get a chance to play.
Once the programs were officially eliminated, the adults involved – namely the administrators, teachers and coaches at the Schools of Technology – should have done a better job of informing the youngsters about the ramifications of transferring back to the home district instead of leaving it all up in the air and unanswered.
Frankly, it’s safe to say that a lot of those people didn’t know that the NJSIAA was going to rule that they had to sit the 30 days.
But does this columnist think it is fair that those kids have to sit out 30 days? Absolutely not. It’s criminal. But what took place recently with the four kids going from High Tech to Union City back to High Tech strictly to play basketball isn’t right either….
Heavyweight boxing contender Tomasz Adamek, who trains regularly in downtown Jersey City, returns to the ring Thursday night at the Prudential Center against New York’s Vinny Maddalone.
It’s just the latest of several fights that Adamek has fought in at the Prudential Center, which has become his home away from home. It should be an interesting fight as Adamek continues his quest to become the world heavyweight champion…
It should be a great basketball season for the fabulous Friars of St. Anthony, who began practices last week once again ranked among the best teams in the country.
One ranking, PrepNation, has the Marauders placed at No. 2 in the country. Another, ESPN Rise Powerade Top 50, has the Friars at No. 5 in the entire land. We’ll have more on the Friars coming up, prior to the season’s tipoff in a few weeks…
Wild one Wednesday night at New Jersey City University, where the Gothic Knights and Rutgers-Newark played a triple-overtime thriller, with R-N coming away with the 118-116 victory.
It was the longest game played in NJCU history. The game featured a lot of local talent, like former CREATE Charter standouts Keith Williams and Walik Albright for NJCU, former Bayonne standout Greg Moore and former St. Anthony standout Jeremiah Rivers for Rutgers. Williams had a team-high 28 points for the Gothic Knights, while Albright added 11, while Moore had 26 and Rivers 12 for the Scarlet Raiders…
The St. Michael’s basketball program in Union City deserves a lot of credit for keeping the flames of basketball alive in north Hudson, giving kids of all ages a chance to play competitive basketball and learn at the same time.
Recently, the organization held a free clinic for youngsters ages eight through 14 and they received instruction from coaches like former St. Anthony, Duke and NBA standout Roshown McLeod, now the head coach at St. Benedict’s Prep, Rutgers University assistant Jim Carr, Hudson Catholic head coach Nick Mariniello, and St. Anthony assistant coach Ben Gamble.
“It means a lot for these coaches to give back to the kids,” said former Union Hill head coach Carlos Cueto, one of the clinic’s organizers. “The kids get to see these coaches in person. We had a great turnout for a Saturday morning, with about 200 kids there.”
Each youngster received a T-shirt and a backpack and several basketballs were raffled off, courtesy of donations from Hugo Carvajal and his Emerald Financial Resources team.
“It was great to have such a high caliber of coaches participating,” Cueto said…
It’s the final weekend of the high school football season, which means it’s the final appearance for 2010 by The Great Hagueini, who has gone 8-3 with his playoff prognostications thus far.
There’s only one game to pick this weekend, so without further ado. And remember, don’t use this selection for any type of wagering, unless it’s for a beef chalupa and a Fresca with your Uncle Looie.
New Providence vs. Lincoln, North 2, Group I title game, New Meadowlands Stadium: There are a lot of interesting sidelights involved with this title tilt. First, as reported in Scoreboard, it’s Lincoln’s first trip to a state championship game in almost 30 years. The Lions are headed to the New Meadowlands Stadium with a chance to bring Jersey City its first public school football state title winner in decades.
But the team the Lions are facing is no slouch. New Providence is the top seed, having already knocked off Hoboken in its path. New Providence has won five state championships in its time and has appeared in an amazing 18 state title games over the years. So experience is on the sideline of the Pioneers.
There’s also an emotional angle. Frank Bottone, one of the true gentlemen in the sport of high school football in New Jersey, is retiring after the game, after 46 years and more than 350 victories. There’s no question that the Pioneers would love to send their beloved coach off to retirement on a happy note.
But New Providence has not faced a team with the offensive firepower and skill that the Lions possess. RB Ty Stevens, QB Ronald Butler, do-everything Deshawn Goodwin and receiver Anthony Jackson are all very explosive and will pose serious threats to a much slower opponent.
Here’s the prediction. If the Lions don’t turn the ball over, they hoist the trophy high. If they play like they did in their two playoff wins, it might not be a contest. New Providence has to control the ball, hold onto the ball and force turnovers. That’s asking a lot. Here’s to the Lions. Lincoln 30, New Providence 14.
Win or lose, we’ll have extensive coverage of the big game from the Meadowlands in next week’s editions, as well as the 2010 Hudson Reporter High School Football All-Area team…–Jim Hague