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Patriots hope to continue home dominance

By WTOP Staff

HOWARD ULMAN
AP Sports Writer

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Stevan Ridley’s father switched his allegiance from the Oakland Raiders once his son was drafted by the New England Patriots.

The running back’s dad sure picked a winner.

The Patriots are 25-4, including playoff games, at Gillette Stadium starting in 2011, when Ridley was drafted. They’re two-touchdown favorites to make that 26-4 when they open their home season against the Raiders on Sunday.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Ridley said. “My dad’s old favorite team was the Raiders, until, of course, I became a Patriot. So we’ve got about 14 people coming up this week, and my mom’s really excited about it. The family’s going to be here, so it’s going to be an exciting atmosphere to come back here to Foxborough and get in the home stadium.”

The Patriots are 11-1 in home openers since they moved into Gillette in 2002. The only loss came when Stephen Gostkowski missed a 42-yard field goal attempt on the next to last play — after making three longer ones — as the Arizona Cardinals won 20-18 in 2012.

That was one of three home losses for Tom Brady that season. But dating back to 2006, the quarterback is 56-5 in his past 61 home games, 49-3 in the regular season.

His other two losses at Gillette in 2012 were to teams that went to the Super Bowl, Baltimore and San Francisco.

The 2011 home loss was to the New York Giants, who beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl that season.

And Brady’s only home loss in the 2010 season was in the playoffs to the New York Jets, who made it to the AFC championship game.

So the Raiders, 32nd and last in the AP Pro32, figure to be Brady’s next conquest.

“We always love playing at home with our fans,” special teams captain Matthew Slater said. “They give us so much support. They give us an extra boost of energy and we feel like we’ve been all over the country and haven’t played a game at home.”

The Patriots opened the season in hot Miami weather with a 33-20 loss to the Dolphins. Then they went to Minnesota, where they beat the Vikings 30-7.

The schedule gets tougher after Sunday with the next four home games against Cincinnati, the Jets, Chicago and Denver. For now, the Patriots are concentrating on Oakland.

“Home games are so important because you only get so many of them,” Slater said, “but each and every week is a season within itself. So our total focus is on playing the Raiders, whether it was home, away or out in the backyard.”

Offenses sometimes struggle to communicate signals in front of rowdy road crowds.

The Patriots won’t have to worry about that Sunday.

“On offense, you don’t use the silent count,” right tackle Sebastian Vollmer said. “You’ve got to take pride in where you play, so you want to keep your record clean at home. Obviously, you want to do that on the road, too, but it doesn’t always work.”

In the past five regular seasons, the Patriots are 37-3 at home and 24-16 on the road. They’re a perfect 8-0 at Gillette in four of the past seven seasons, including 5-3 in 2008 when Brady suffered a season-ending knee injury in the opener.

Cheering the Patriots and booing the opponents help but only go so far.

Coach Bill Belichick has a different answer for his team’s success at home.

“Good players,” he said. “Winning games in this league is all about having good players. I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of them. Players win games.”

The Patriots have a lot more good ones than the Raiders. And while Ridley is running in his No. 22 jersey, he expects his father to be wearing a replica in the stands.

“He’ll be in 2-2 all the way, man,” Ridley said. “No black and silver for him.”

___

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

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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