plea to the charges, which include public intoxication, cri

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Tom Coughlin and Graeme McDowell share an Irish heritage and the highest achievement in their sports. One has a U.S. Open title and delivered the clinching point in the Ryder Cup, the other has two Super Bowl titles as coach of the New York Giants.Only when McDowell opened another restaurant, this one down the road from PGA Tour headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, did they discover a similar passion.They sat at a table a few hours before Nona Blue was filled to capacity Wednesday on opening night, swapping stories about their foundations, each geared toward helping sick children without neglecting the financial and emotion burden on the entire family.What brought them together was McDowell wanting to be a good neighbor in a new town, and Coughlin already having done his part.When you come into an area, if you want to establish yourself, giving back is a great starting place, McDowell said.The original Nona Blue opened three years ago in Orlando. For the next tavern, McDowell and business partners Joe Davi and Bill Bona had what amounted to a dress rehearsal last week for the staff. The food was complimentary. All they asked was for guests to leave a gratuity that would go to a local charity.Jamie Baird, who handles the marketing, found the Jay Fund Foundation that Coughlin began in 1996 when he was head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.It seemed like a good fit.The tips that night came out to $15,000.When Graeme got ready to open the restaurant, the first thing they did was try to give back, Coughlin said. And when they were talking in the community about giving back, we were fortunate that they named the Jay Fund Foundation as the charity of choice. So it worked out super for us.They were practicing to open, said Coughlin, still relying on football terms. When I heard it was $15,000, I couldnt believe it.McDowell, raised in Northern Ireland, did his homework on Coughlins foundation and the man who won 170 games in 20 years as an NFL coach. He even read Coughlins book, Earn the Right to Win.And yes, he made sure he was on time -- which means early -- for the opening.People were very passionate about coachs foundation, and they gave generously, McDowell said.Coughlins inspiration for his foundation was Jay McGillis, a safety who played for Coughlin at Boston College when he died of leukemia in 1992. He made up for his lack of size by working harder than anyone else. He was Coughlins kind of guy. And his death, along with the effect on parents and five siblings, stayed with the coach.The experience we had with Jay and his family, I just knew we would give back and it would be in the spirit of Jay, Coughlin said.Coughlin is still popular in Jacksonville, having taken the Jaguars to the AFC title game in 1996 in just their second season. He was fired after a third straight losing season in 2002, and he was hired by the Giants in 2004.Two major hospitals were concerned that would be the end of the Jay Fund. Instead, contributions increased when Coughlin said he was leaving it there, and he started a branch of the Jay Fund in New York.Only when he met McDowell did Coughlin realize The G-Mac Foundation was for childrens medical research. One aspect of the foundation brings Irish children and their families to Orlando during the holidays for some happy times.Thats what coachs foundation looks after, McDowell said. Its not only the victim, but the siblings and the families, and the fact it tears them apart. Its a financial strain. So the idea of bringing families to Orlando is just to put smiles on their faces and put families back together.It put a smile on Coughlins face just listening to McDowell speak.Bringing kids to Disney, he said. 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Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break.OPELIKA, Ala. -- The case against a man accused of torching one of Auburn Universitys famed oak trees at Toomers Corner is going to a grand jury.The Opelika-Auburn News (http://bit.ly/2dq3Jqn) reported Thursday that a judge sent the case against Jochen Wiest, 29, of Auburn to a grand jury to consider an indictment following a hearing Wednesday.Covering the Toomers oaks with toilet paper after Auburn football victories is a school tradition that had been frustrated after University of Alabama fan Harvey Updyke poisoned the original trees, which were removed and replaced with new oaks in February 2015. This fall was the first season when school officials allowed fans to resume rolling the young trees with the highly flammable paper.Wiest was arrested as flames engulfed one of the young trees after Auburn beat Louisiana State University on Sept. 24.An Auburn student said she saw Weist set fire to the toilet paper, followed him and yelled for help detaining the man until officers arrived. Auburn police detective Michael Creighton testified that Wiest had a lighter on him and was wearing an Auburn hat.ddddddddddddWeist, a German national living in Auburn, is free on bond. He did not attend the hearing and has not entered a plea to the charges, which include public intoxication, criminal mischief and damaging a venerated object. The grand jury could add or change the charges, or decline to indict him for any crimes.Defense lawyer Margaret Brown questioned the charges, saying the Toomers Oaks could not be considered a venerated object under the law because they arent a structure, place of worship, burial or monument.But Prosecutor Jessica Venturi said the trees were considered a monument the second they were installed.District Judge Steven Speakman said the status of the trees was more of a legal question than a factual question.---Information from: Opelika-Auburn News, http://www.oanow.com/ ' ' '