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Football: It’s a good day to wear blue

Los Angeles Times staff writer Ben Bolch
By Ben Bolch
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Santa Margarita fans are wearing blue ribbon pins and bracelets tonight at Saddleback College to raise awareness for prostate cancer, a disorder that has afflicted Eagles Coach Harry Welch.

More than 1,000 pins and bracelets were donated by the Los Angeles-based Prostate Cancer Research Institute as part of national prostate cancer awareness month efforts. Santa Margarita’s opponent, Carson, will also be clad in blue because that is the Colts’ school color.

Welch, who is recovering from the disease, said he wanted to be a role model for others to get tested.

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‘If I can use my position in this community to help others live longer lives and have more time with their loved ones,’ Welch said, ‘I’ll feel better about this than winning a state championship.’

Kickoff between the Eagles (1-1) and Colts (2-0), ranked No. 19 in the Southland by The Times, is in about 10 minutes.

--Ben Bolch

Varsity Times Insider
Ben Bolch

Ben Bolch has been a Los Angeles Times staff writer since 1999. He is serving his second stint as the UCLA beat writer, which seems fitting since he has covered almost every sports beat except hockey and horse racing. Bolch is also the author of the recently released book “100 Things UCLA Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die.” He previously covered UCLA basketball from 2010-11 before going on to cover the NBA and the Clippers for five years. He happily traded in gobs of hotel points and airline miles to return to cover UCLA basketball and football in the summer of 2016. Bolch was once selected by NBA TV’s “The Starters” as the “Worst of the Week” after questioning their celebrity journalism-style questions at an NBA All-Star game and considers it one of his finer moments.

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