Welcome to Thursday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.

WHAT’S HAPPENING LOCALLY THURSDAY:
NHL: Canadiens at Bruins, 7 p.m. (NESN)

AROUND THE WEB:

♦ There were substantially fewer people at Saturday’s UMass-UNH football game at Gillette Stadium than a typical Patriots game, but the event required more of an effort from police. According to the Attleboro Sun Chronicle, Saturday’s “Colonial Clash,” which drew a crowd of 19,800, ended with 64 people being placed into custody, compared with 48 at the previous Sunday’s Pats game. Most of the fans were placed into protective custody for intoxication. There were 16 criminal arrests, including 10 for minors in possession of alcohol.

Foxboro police chief Edward O’Leary blamed unsanctioned buses from both campuses that arrived late and were filled with intoxicated students.

“It was relatively quiet until the game got under way, when the students arrived from the party buses,” O’Leary said, adding that many of those individuals did not even attend the game, instead heading for restaurants and bars at Patriot Place.

UMass is scheduled to play five home games at Gillette next season as it transitions to Division 1 FBS status.

♦ Former Patriots defensive back Asante Samuel is not happy with his current employer, the Eagles. Samuel compared the front office to fantasy football players for using him as trade bait after acquiring fellow cornerbacks Nnamdi Asomugha and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie in the offseason.

“Couple people upstairs might not want me, but who cares. They’ve probably never played football,” Samuel said Wednesday. “It’s a business and they run it like a business and they’re going to do what they need to do. They’re playing with a lot of money, playing fantasy football, doing their thing.”

♦ The Angels interviewed former Yankees and Dodgers assistant general manager Kim Ng Wednesday. In The Los Angeles Times, Helene Elliott writes that Ng should get the job because of her resume, not because she would break barriers as the first woman GM.

ON THIS DAY TRIVIA: On Oct. 27, 2004, the Red Sox beat the Cardinals, 3-0, to complete a sweep of the World Series. Whose first-inning home run was the only run the Red Sox would need?

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I didn’t intend anything or to hurt the reputation of anyone on the New England Patriots, on behalf of Robert Kraft. That’s all. It was just a simple picture and that’s all, and from here on out, I’m just here to talk about the Pittsburgh Steelers and the big game this weekend.” – Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, on the photo of him with an adult film star

STAT OF THE DAY: 22 – Years since there was a break of more than one day between games of the World Series, with the break in 1989 (of 11 days) caused by the Bay Area earthquake

‘NET RESULTS: Moldovan soccer player Julian Bursuc punches a referee in the face and then retires rather than face a suspension. However, he was detained by the authorities for the attack.

It’s been said that every dog has its day. This one had it during a soccer game, and it made the most of it.

TRIVIA ANSWER: Johnny Damon, batting leadoff

SOOTHING SOUNDS: Lee Greenwood turns 69 Thursday.

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