COACH CLASS

Two of the mourners at the wake for Johnny Gavin on the penultimate episode of this season's 'Rescue Me' were played by big names in sports: Phil Esposito, former hockey player on the Bruins, and Bill Belichick, head coach of the Patriots.

Gee, two Massachusetts-based teams represented on a Denis Leary show.... Who'd-a thunk it?

But neither of them were playing themselves. Phil Esposito plays Rocco, the chief at another fire house, and had been on the show at least once before. Belichick's character was never named, but it's hard to think that he was playing himself. First off, where would the connection be in which he even knew anybody in the Gavin Family? (Maybe his televersion "knew" Maggie Gavin in the past, if you know what I mean, nudge nudge, wink wink!)

The temptation is there, though, to think that Belichick is playing himself. While talking to Espo's character, Rocco asks him if he likes sports. You expect him to say football, but instead he replies, "I like lacrosse."

And that's pure Belichick, since he was the team captain when he played for Wesleyan University back in the day. (And now his daughter plays for W.U. as well.)

So if Bill Belichik should ever appear on another TV series as the fictionalized version of himself, I'm not even going to bother trying to jump through the hoops to make a connection between that show and 'Rescue Me', since that would be a totally different character who just happens to be the identical twin of the Pats coach.

I'm just glad, no matter who he was playing, we didn't see him later in the show down the hall in a side bedroom with Probie......

Not that there's anything wrong with that.....

BCnU!
Tele-Toby