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Editor in Chief: Alex Menendez

Executive Editor: Steve Kidd

Associate Editors: Donald Montague Don Juan Moore Tara Menendez

Photographers: Alex Menendez Steve Kidd Donald Montague John Czajkowski Steve Johnson Romeo Guzman Dion Menendez Don Juan Moore Reinhold Matay Gray Quetti David Evertsen Bobby Pierre

Writers: Steve Kidd Alex Menendez Andy Nicol Linnea Edmeier

Editorial and Business Offices: Orlando Sports Mag 1337 Quailey Street Orlando, Florida 32804

Website: www.orlandosportsmag.com

Story ideas and photo submissions are always welcome.Please contact us for advertising rates and distribution information.

Email: Alex@OrlandoSportsMag.com

All images and stories are copyright Orlando Sports Mag.

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This months cover featuring Heisman trophy winner Jameis Winston was captured by Don Juan Moore. Don Juan has covered the Florida State Seminoles for decades and was in attendance for this years BCSChampionship game against the Auburn Tigers at the Rose Bowl in California.

Page 56Orlando City Soccer are not only USL PRO Champs, they are MLS bound.

Page 46The FSU Seminoles are National Champions of NCAA football, with their Heismann winning quarterback Jameis Winston.

Page 20The 2013 Picture album is here, featuring some local photographers and their favorites.

Page 8The UCF Knights attend their first BCS Bowl Championship.....and dominate!

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This is the one and only article that I will write about New York Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez, ever. A-Rod is no doubt one of the best baseball players to ever play third base, and his batting skills are phenomenal, he is the youngest to hit 600 home runs, beating Babe Ruths record by over a year. He also has fourteen 100 RBI seasons, more than any other player in MLB history. On September 24, 2010 the Dominican smacked two homers, besting Sammy Sosa’s mark of 609 home runs, making him the all time Hispanic batting leader as well, he is a machine.

A-Rod is also one of the wealthiest players ever to play Major League ball, signing a 10 year, $275 million contact with the Yankees in 2007, an unbelievable feat at the time.To say he has the dream job would be an understatement, the guy is on top of the world, but as we all know, things are obviously not all they seem to be.

On August 5, 2013, Rodriguez was suspended for 211 games as a result of the Biogenesis steroid drug investigation, but was allowed to play for the Yankees while the suspension was under appeal. Had the original suspension been upheld, it would have been the longest non-lifetime suspension in baseball history. After an arbitration hearing, and his deep pockets, the suspension was reduced to 162 games, which will surely keep him off the field for the entire upcoming 2014 season.

I grew up watching the Yankees and as a child they were the only team I followed. Reggie Jackson was a National treasure and the hero that everyone in my neighborhood looked up to, a good guy with a positive reputation, much like the modern day Derek Jeter, also a New York Yankee.

Reggie was what all of us youngsters strived to one day be. Jackson was also extra cool because he had an actual candy bar named after him, truly legit!

I am not sure exactly when the idols and hero status started to fade, but as I got older, I started to see more and more into pro sports and the athletes that played the games. It seemed that once most of the big names had peaked, they started to become introverted, and the smiles faded. I remember growing up and seeing a television commercial for Coke, that featured the Steelers “Mean” Joe Greene, you have to watch it on YouTube to see what I mean, but this is how professionals were suppose to act. They were to realize that the gift they had wouldn’t last forever, and to be kind to everybody, not just those that helped you on the way up. They were suppose to treat kids who looked up to them with honesty and concern. How easily fame can change a person….

Alex Rodriguez was given every chance to better himself and to be the ideal role model with the opportunites presented to him, but his greed to be baseballs best in every category seems to have sent him to a personal prison that he may never work his way out of. In February 2009, after previously denying use of PEDS (performance enhancing drugs) including during a 2007 interview with reporter Katie Couric on the television show 60 Minutes, A-Rod admitted to using steroids, saying the he in fact did use them from 2001 to 2003 when playing for the Texas Rangers, due to “an enormous amount of pressure” to perform! Well I hate to break it to you buddy, but everyone has pressure in their lives, they don’t however have a signed contract for $275 dollars……….

Say it ain’t so

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Blake Bortles has 4 TDs as No. 15 UCF upsets No. 6 Baylor in FiestaThere are now 4 Big Teams in the State of Florida. Obviously the Seminoles are leading the way, but following them in order are the UCF Knights, Miami Hurricanes and then the Florida Gators.Yes you read that correctly, I said UCF, who finished the Polls ranked at #10, the highest ever ranking in the history of the school. After a 52-42 drubbing of the #6 Baylor Bears in the BCS Fiesta Bowl, the Knights are flying sky high!

Out of reach for most of the game, the Amer-ican Athletic Conference champion Knights pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year by outlasting the nation’s top scoring team in a rousing BCS debut during the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl that was broadcast on National television. Many analysts have said it was the second best matchup in terms of bowls played this year!

Leading the pack was the underdog quarterback Blake Bortles who finished the game 20-of-31 for 301 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions in the victory. He also added 93 rushing yards and an additional score on eight carries. Bortles is now a predicted first round NFL draft pick after a great season where his only loss came in a 38-35 defeat to the #8 South Carolina Gamecocks at home. Many have said Bortles will eventually surpass the most

famous quarterback the school has ever seen, Duante Culpepper. Proving he is as great a lead-er as many have claimed, he took the victory in stride.

“There’s not many outside of us who believe we had a chance, but we did and I think we showed what UCF football is all about,” Bortles said in a post game press conference after the game. UCF (12-1) wasn’t given much of a chance, entering the game as a 17-point underdog by the Vegas oddsmakers, and the lack of support from stu-dents who couldn’t afford to travel across country was surely a deficit. However, the Knights played their game on the road as they had all season and shut down Baylors top scoring offense, that was predicted to dismantle the UCF defenders.

After racking up a 14-point lead early, UCF piled up 556 total yards. UCF and Baylor set the record for most points scored in a Fiesta Bowl game (94 Pts), and the game also finished as the 2nd-high-est scoring game in the history of any of the cur-rent BCS bowls.

“It’s a great win, a great feeling for everyone who’s been through the program,” UCF coach George O’Leary said. It took him 10 years to reach the pinnacle for the school, but his tim-ing was flawless, the team played some ranked opponents and was able to garner the National spotlight with a few games shown on ESPN this year, beating both Louisville and Penn State. The coach, who was fired by Notre Dame five days after being hired for lying on his résumé, has slowly built his reputation back up in Orlando, from a winless streak back in 2004, to this years inaugural American Athletic Conference title and automatic BCS berth this season.

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Known for its offensive prowess, Baylor (11-2) had a hard time keeping up with the Knights. The Big 12 champions finished with 550 total yards but were uncharacteristically undisciplined, getting 17 penalties for 135 yards.

“We caught a football team that was hot,” Baylor coach Art Briles said. “They played extremely well early, got into us. We tried to play catch-up the whole game, never could turn it around when it needed turning.”

UCF has been hot all season, and the Fiesta Bowl was the BCS coming-out party for both Baylor and UCF before college football switches to a new playoff system next season.

The highly touted Bears had been building toward this since Briles became coach in 2009, winding up his high-octane offense to lead the nation in scor-ing and churn out the second-most yards in FBS history.

The matchup was projected to be like the 2011 Fi-esta Bowl, in which mighty Oklahoma rolled over Connecticut 48-20.

However the ranked UCF team would have none of that, they won and knocked the Bears out of the top 10 at years end.

Time will tell how next years Knights team will do after this spectacular ending, but there should be a great recruiting class coming in and interest in the Knights should be remarkable. Bortles brought UCF into the spotlight and will most likely contin-ue in the Pros for the next decade, joining the likes of Brandon Marshall, Bruce Miller and Atari Bigby to name a few.

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Photo: Mark Rebilas

Central Florida Knights linebacker Terrance Plummer (left) celebrates with the defensive MVP award and quarterback Blake Bortles with the offensive MVP after defeating the Baylor Bears during the Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium. Central Florida defeated Baylor 52-42.

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Former Boxing World Champion Carmen Basilio was rememberedduring the International Boxing Hall of Fame induction weekend

in Canastota, New York, after he passed last year.

Photos of the Year

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U.S. forward Sydney Leroux (2) and U.S. forward Abby Wambach (20) celebrate after Leroux scored the first goal of the game, during a women’s soccer International friendly match between Brazil and the United States National Team, at the Florida Citrus Bowl on Sunday, November 10, 2013 in Orlando, Florida. This image, snapped by Alex Menendez, was voted by ESPNW magazine as one of their photos of the year for 2013.

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Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico (left) knocks out Delvin Rodriguez of the Dominican Rebublic square off during their 12-round super welterweight

bout at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, October 5, 2013. Photo: Alex Menendez

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A competitive surfer rides a wave during the 28th annual National Kidney Foundation, Rich Salick Pro/Am surf festival takes place at the the Cocoa Beach pier on Saturday, September 2, 2013 in Cocoa Beach, Florida. This event raises thousands of dollars for people with kidney disease and also

benefits the services of the NKF of Florida. Photo:Alex Menendez

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Louisville head coach Charlie Strong gets the Gatorade dumped on him by Cardinals defensive end Lorenzo Mauldin (94) during the NCAA Football Russell Athletic Bowl football game between the Louisville Cardinals and the Miami Hurricanes, at the Florida Citrus Bowl on Saturday, December 28, 2013 in Orlando, Florida. Charlie Strong was once the strength coach for the Universtiy of Florida, and was the one who bulked up Tim Tebow. Texas has since recruited Strong as their head coach after Mack Brown resigned. Photo: Alex Menendez

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Oakland Athletics second baseman Jemile Weeks (19) is not able to handle the throw at 2nd, Tampa Bay Rays designated hitter Luke Scott (30) was called out at 2nd by home plate ump Paul Nauert for batter interference during Major League Baseball game action between the Oakland Athletics and the Tampa Bay Rays. Oakland defeated Tampa Bay 4-3 in 12 innings at Tropicana Field in St Petersburg, Florida. Photo: Romeo Guzman

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UCF Knights guard Brandon Goodwin (22) gets tripped up by Louisville Cardinals forward Akoy Agau (22) as Louisville head coach Rick Pitono throws his arms up in frustration during an NCAA basketball game be-tween the 14th ranked Louisville Cardinals and the UCF Knights at the

CFE Arena on Tuesday, December 31, 2013 in Orlando, Florida.

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San Francisco 49ers fullback Bruce Miller (49) gets tackeled during an NFL football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, December 15, 2013 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Miller was a standout defensive player at UCF before transitioning to fullback in the NFL. Photo: Alex Menendez

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Tiger Woods hits out of the green side bunker on the 7th hole during first round golf action of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard held at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge in Orlan-do, Florida. Photo: Romeo Guzman

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Odie Armstrong of the Arizona Rattlers celebrates the Arena Bowl XXVI-Championship by holding up the trophy after defeating the Philadelphia Soul at the Amway Arena in Orlando, Florida. Photo: Don Montague

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A horrific wreck of NASCAR driver Kyle Larson occurs with debris flying into the spectator grandstand area on the front stretch during a NASCAR Drive for COPD 300 race at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, February 23, 2013 in Daytona Beach, Florida. Sequence photos: Alex Menendez

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Florida Gulf Coast University Eagle #5 Christopher Varidel drives to the basket late in the 3rd QTR against the Mercer University Bears in the Atlantic Sun Conferences’ Mens Basketball Championship Game. FGCU #2 Seed in the Atlantic Sun Tournament went on to defeat Mercer, the #1 seed, 88-75 to win it’s first ASUN Mens Basketball Championship in only it second year of eligibility and guarantee the Eagles a trip to the NCAA Tournament. The team gained National exposure with their “Dunk City” slogan not long after. Photo: David Evertsen

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Participants of the Color Run Orlando event react to getting covered by the colored dust after completing the 5K. Billed as the “Happiest 5K on the Planet,? the Color Run is a family-friendly run for those who don’t mind getting dust thrown at them after beginning the race with a plain white t-shirt on. This is the first event of the season and occured at the Citrus Bowl in downtown Orlando, Florida on January 13, 2013. Photo: Alex Menendez

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The Bowl Championship Series volatile reputation has finally come to an end and the winning ways of the Southeastern Conference has followed suit. Both have been utterly destroyed and put to bed…..

#1 ranked Florida State University of the Atlantic Coast Conference, featuring Heisman Trophy winning Quarterback Jameis Winston, held to their promise and completed a perfect season as they rallied past #2 Auburn of the SEC 34-31 in the BCS Championship at the Rose Bowl.A reception by Kelvin Benjamin with a 2-yard touchdown pass with 13 seconds left in the game sealed the fate of Auburn and the Seminoles war chant erupted Nationwide!“Jameis grew up unbelievably tonight,” Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher said. “He struggled, but tonight’s probably the best football game he’s ever played. Because he struggled early. And that’s what big-time players do when the money’s on the line, they can suck it up in the fourth quarter and do what they have to do.”Winston, a redshirt freshman with a tumultuous past few months in the limelight, settled down at the most vital time of the season, he delivered the knockout punch when he needed it most. He sparked FSU from an 18-point second-quarter deficit, which just happened to be the largest comeback in BCS bowl game history It also marked the first time in the 15-game history of the BCS championship that a team trailing at the half came back to win.

“I said ‘guys, we didn’t come here for no reason.’” Winston said. “I said “guys, this is ours man. All the adversity we went through the first few quarters, it was ours to take.” He surely gave himself the best birthday present anyone could ask for, a National Championship for himself

and the Seminole Nation who can still be heard chanting if the wind is blowing in your direction….

Auburn (12-2) was not really favored to win, though skeptical fans of the SEC would argue otherwise. The Tigers made it to the Championship game by lobbing up a 73-yard, Hail Mary tipped pass touchdown to upset the Georgia Bulldogs, and then converted on the most famous play of the year, a 100-yard return of a missed field goal to foil unbeaten #1 ranked Alabama. The momentum was surely in their favor, especially with the remarkable start they had to the game, taking a 21-10 halftime lead.Florida State on the other hand was ranked #2 all year until Alabama fell, and they beat their first 13 opponents by an average score of 42 points, with Jimbo Fisher (who was schooled under Bobby Bowden by the way), leading Winston in all aspects of his game. The scary part is this quarterback is still only a freshman! The Tigers held on as long as they could, but the final minute proved fatal, as they couldn’t stop the Heisman winner with his signature style throws and dancing feet.“We’ve got a lot of competitors in our locker room,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. “They’re disappointed. It went back and forth, a lot of little plays swung, but you’ve got to give them guys credit. They drove the field and they scored towards the end and found a way to win.”The game marked the end of the BCS, which started in 1998. Next season the sport will attempt to break in a four-team playoff, and it should be interesting, there will no doubt be conflict as to who ultimately gets chosen as the top 4 teams to participate. Mark my words though, FSU will be in the mix as long as Jameis stays healthy and makes it through his upcoming baseball season.

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The National media could not get enough of the Heisman winning quarterback in the locker room. Winston played the whole event off as if he had been doing interviews for many years.

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The Seminoles aggressive defense kept them in the game long enough to win in the final minute.

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Orlando City Soccer

Moving up to MLS

5958Photo: Alex Menendez

The 2013 season was a very big year for Orlando City SC and its dedicat-ed band of diehard fans.

The Lions captured the 2013 USL PRO Champi-onship against Charlotte in front of a rowdy 20,886 fans at Fifth Third Bank Field at the Florida Citrus Bowl. The attendance set the all-time record for the club and USL PRO, beating the previous mark by 9,800 fans and far outnumbering any projected numbers for the event.

“To play in front of more than 20,000 tonight was amazing,” said Orlando City Head Coach Adrian Heath. “It’s a little bit surreal because I’ve never been involved in a game like that in my life (scor-ing 7 goals).“

But don’t let this amazing achievement fool you, the ownership of Orlando City SC have their sights set much higher than what’s already been accom-plished- and that all starts with this upcoming sea-son.

The ownership, including Rawlins and Owner Fla-vio Augusto da Silva, have said multiple times that the aim is not to just be another MLS club- but be one of the best both on and off the pitch.

“2013 was a big year for us,” said Orlando City President Phil Rawlins in an interview. “Obviously our dream of becoming a MLS expansion club has been achieved, and we’ll now move onto the next opportunities that lay ahead of us.”

“We want to be an international brand,” said Au-gusto da Silva. “Our goals are set high to grow the Lions into a team that succeeds in Major League Soccer and is known worldwide.”

With the recent approval of the funding package for a brand new soccer stadium, that vision is quickly becoming a reality.

“The voice of the people has been heard,” he said as supporters chanted around him. “You can hear it’s an emotional time. We have the best fans in the country” says Rawlins.

The stadium would be built along Church Street in Parramore, a block west of the current Am-way Arena.

“We are proud and excited to welcome Orlando to Major League Soccer,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in a league statement. “From the success of the Orlando City Soccer Club, to the incredible fan support and passion in the community, this is a new market that really ex-cites us.

With their MLS debut in 2015, the Lions will be challenging up over the next year with sched-uled practices and friendlies against some cur-rent MLS teams and rosters.

Orlando City will play the 2014 season at the ESPN Disney Wide World of Sports complex. Then, in 2015, the Lions will open their MLS era in the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium, before moving into a new 18,000-seat soccer stadium in downtown Orlando later that summer.

Orlando City will join the league at the same time as the league’s 20th franchise, New York City FC, marking the fourth time the league has added two clubs in one year. In 1998, the Chicago Fire and Miami Fusion joined. In 2005, Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA came into the league. And the last time was in 2011, when the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps made the jump from the lower divisions up to MLS.

Miguel Gallardo has consistently been a mainstay between the nets over the past three seasons. The Torreon, Mexico, native has never had a Goals Against Average (GAA) higher than 1.00 during his time in Orlando, earning accolades such as 2011 USL PRO Goalkeeper of the year. In 2012, Gallardo led the league in GAA with a .780 average and recorded eight shutouts.

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Midfielder Kevin Molino just signed as the club’s first-ever Major League Soccer signing for the inaugural 2015 season. Molino is guaranteed a spot on Orlando’s 2015 MLS squad, and will also play in the final USL PRO season under Orlando City Head Coach Adrian Heath in 2014.

“Kevin was out of contract with us and was being courted heavily in Europe and the States. He’s turned down deals from several MLS teams to stay with us in Orlando. That says a lot about his love for this club,” said Heath. “He will be a great asset for us again in ’14 and moving forward into MLS.”

Molino has been a top-performer for the Lions since the club began operations three years ago. The winger was USL-PRO’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2012. In total, Molino has played over 4,200 regular-season minutes for Orlando, notching 13 assists from 2011-2013. That mark is tied for a franchise-record alongside Midfielder Jamie Watson.

The midfielder has proved himself a vital contributor to Heath’s playing system over the past three years, especially in the final third. The creative-minded Molino has caused headaches for opposing defences throughout his career in the USL PRO, and will be a key component for the Lions in 2014 and 2015.

Molino will be the club’s first-ever MLS signing for the inaugural 2015 season, as his multi-year contract guarantees him a spot on Orlando’s 2015 MLS squad.

Orlando City SC announced this past week the club’s 2014 preseason schedule, featuring a match against Major League Soccer (MLS) Chicago Fire on Tuesday, February 11 at IMG Academy in Brandenton, Fla. A series of collegiate friendlies across Central Florida will also take place, lead-ing up to the 2014 USL PRO season.

The collegiate section of the schedule includes matches against Florida International University, Stetson University, Rollins College and the Univer-sity of South Florida. Fans are welcome to attend friendlies throughout the preseason.

Orlando City will also be participating in the annual Disney Pro Soccer Classic held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. The Pro Soccer Classic begins on Wednesday, February 19, and runs through Satur-day, March 1. The Lions will face such prominent MLS sides as the Philadelphia Union (February 19), Toronto FC (February 22) and the Columbus Crew (February 26).

Season ticket holders will be able to claim a special discount for all Disney Pro Soccer Classic matches by calling (855) ORL-CITY.

In 2013 Sporting KC’s Dom Dwyer was on loan at Orlando City scoring 11 league goals in 12 league games. He was then recalled by Sporting where he would make a number of ap-pearances scoring goals in league play and the CONCACAF Champions League, including the game winning goal in the Eastern Conference Final.

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MUSIC: My NeighborOSM recently sat down with Andy Nicol of the Orlando band “My Neighbor”.

OSM: Tell me about the band named “My Neighbor”.

A.N.: My Neighbor is an Orlando-based band consisting of myself (Guitar, Vocals, Harmonica, Banjo), David Hoppes (Guitar and Vocals), Scott Slomba (Bass) and Jen Willsey (Percussion and Vocals). Their sets are balanced out with melodic and lyrically driven songs inspired by folk, jam, rock, blues, country and bluegrass. They exhibit a stylistic balance of those genres and display an authentic personal attachment to their music. Sets that focus on three-layered harmonies, percussive acoustic guitar, ringing banjo, melodic leads on guitar and harmonica, fluid bass playing and a driving rhythm of djembe work are a staple at their gigs. The diversity, energy and humble sound of My Neighbor definitely makes us a band worth watching.

OSM: Who are some of your major influences?

A.N.: Oh that’s easy, Neil Young, Grateful Dead, Avett Brothers, Crosby Stills Nash & Young. We have a collection of originals also and we are always writing. We all do some writing, but me and David are the main song writers. We also do cover songs at certain venues and always enjoy playing cover music and requests.

OSM: A few of you have kids, how does that work?

A.N.: A few of us have kids in the band and they all enjoy and are exposed to music. Many of them have even been on stage and performed with the band at different events!

We have been featured on WPRK 91.5 FM (Rollins Radio) 3 times. We had good feedback and had people turn out at our shows because they heard our music on the radio. The crowds are getting larger all the time!We have had discussions about going in the studio to create an album and will likely do so in late 2014.

Our music is available for streaming at many sites including our website (www.MyNeighborBand.com) and our Electronic Press Kit located at www.reverbnation.com/rpk/myneighbor . Come on out, we’d love to see you!

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