The post I wrote today on the Badgersports forum
I spent way too much time typing this post for it to be seen only by the approximately 20 people who look at the Badgersports forum (insert sarcastic remark about the approximately 2 people who read this blog). So here it is:
Ten Random, Rambling Observations/Musings:
1) Before the season, I thought the most likely record for the Badgers this year would be 5-7. They've already got the 5.
2) I've been surprised by the defense this year. I was surprised that they held North Carolina to 3 points at North Carolina. I was surprised that a defensive which lost 7 contributors on the line from the previous year PRIOR TO losing its best remaining defensive end in game three was able to not only get some pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but rank at or near the top of the Big Ten in sacks. The defensive play at Northwestern was surprising in light of the moderate success in the first five games of the year, but not so much when compared to my more modest preseason expectations.
3) Badgermaniac starting a long thread to bash Saint Bucky, then pontificating in that thread about how he is all about raising the level of discourse on his board-- irony, anyone?
4) I remain cautiously optimistic about the prospects for year one and beyond of the Bielema era. The Badgers should be no worse than pretty good next year, and could be outstanding if they can find someone in next year's WR corps who can make some plays, and if the bounces and injuries go their way.
5) RandallCamp and BadgerRoy get props for mentioning me by name in a thread over on the Badgernation board. We could use those guys over here. Can I get a couple sycophants while I'm at it? As board administrator, I think I'm entitled to a couple.
6) Went to the game with my wife. Drove down from Madison Saturday morning, and were able to buy a pair of great 35 yardline seats from a guy literally within seconds of stepping off the shuttle bus. Paid the same amount the Northwestern ticket office would have charged me for much crappier seats: $50 per ticket. I know we could have gotten in for significantly less, but I just wanted to secure the tickets quickly so we could get something to eat, and have good seats, and not have to screw around with shopping and haggling. By the way, is there a verb for "buying tickets for a scalper"? Someone needs to add to the lexicon here, so that when someone asks something like, "Where are your tickets?", you can just say "We're going to SCLEMP a pair" or whatever, rather than the lengthy "We're going to buy a pair from a scalper" or potentially-confusing "We're going to SCALP a pair".
7) But I digress. We enjoyed our visit to Northwestern on the whole, though it obviously falls short of the kind of experience you can get in Columbus, Madison, or Happy Valley. Walked through the campus, saw a little of downtown (had supper at Chili's, which we both like, since it was across from where we parked). Didn't have a lot of time since I had to be back in Grinnell by Sunday morning, but got a little bit of the flavor. Not much of a bar scene from what I hear, but neither of us are into bars (well, maybe sports bars a little), so that was no big loss. Plenty of interesting shopping in downtown Evanston. Only regret was that the long line at Mustard's Last Stand persuaded us to just get lunch from a guy with a hot dog cart, so we missed out on that critical component of the Northwestern experience (I usually make an effort to partake in the renowned gastronomical options of the various Big Ten venues, such as the Penn State Creamery, or the Thurman Cafe's Thurmanburger in Columbus, which actually isn't really near the stadium, and didn't work out for us anyway when we visited last year, since the grill was broken that day). But I digress again.
8) At this point, I'd love to post a bunch of pictures I took Saturday capturing the Northwestern experience, but since neither of us brought a camera on the trip, that won't be possible. You'll just have to go and see for yourself.
9) When the Badgers played there in 2003, I thought about going, but decided not to because I figured they'd just lose anyway. Great decision, but then they lose the 2005 game anyway. At least it wasn't a total turkey of a game like the one in 2003. In fact, it was very nearly one of the epic victories, sure to be remembered for generations. Darned interception! Oh well.
10) Only Big Ten road venue remaining on my list is Purdue. Maybe I'll make it out to West LaFayette next year to complete the circuit. It would also be nice to attend Badger wins at Michigan, Illinois, and (DAMMIT) Northwestern, so maybe I'll go back to those places someday.
11) Hope this helps, RedWagon.
Posted seperately, here are my updated Big Ten road trip rankings:
1. OSU (2004)
2. PSU (2003)
3. MSU (2000)
4. Iowa (1998, 2002)
5. Michigan (1998)
6. Northwestern (2005)
T7. Illinois (2001)
T7. Indiana (1998)
9. Minnesota (1993, 1999)
NR: Wisconsin (bias) and Purdue (haven't been there).
Wisconsin's road game record for games I've attended is now 6-5, with a losing streak of 1.
Ten Random, Rambling Observations/Musings:
1) Before the season, I thought the most likely record for the Badgers this year would be 5-7. They've already got the 5.
2) I've been surprised by the defense this year. I was surprised that they held North Carolina to 3 points at North Carolina. I was surprised that a defensive which lost 7 contributors on the line from the previous year PRIOR TO losing its best remaining defensive end in game three was able to not only get some pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but rank at or near the top of the Big Ten in sacks. The defensive play at Northwestern was surprising in light of the moderate success in the first five games of the year, but not so much when compared to my more modest preseason expectations.
3) Badgermaniac starting a long thread to bash Saint Bucky, then pontificating in that thread about how he is all about raising the level of discourse on his board-- irony, anyone?
4) I remain cautiously optimistic about the prospects for year one and beyond of the Bielema era. The Badgers should be no worse than pretty good next year, and could be outstanding if they can find someone in next year's WR corps who can make some plays, and if the bounces and injuries go their way.
5) RandallCamp and BadgerRoy get props for mentioning me by name in a thread over on the Badgernation board. We could use those guys over here. Can I get a couple sycophants while I'm at it? As board administrator, I think I'm entitled to a couple.
6) Went to the game with my wife. Drove down from Madison Saturday morning, and were able to buy a pair of great 35 yardline seats from a guy literally within seconds of stepping off the shuttle bus. Paid the same amount the Northwestern ticket office would have charged me for much crappier seats: $50 per ticket. I know we could have gotten in for significantly less, but I just wanted to secure the tickets quickly so we could get something to eat, and have good seats, and not have to screw around with shopping and haggling. By the way, is there a verb for "buying tickets for a scalper"? Someone needs to add to the lexicon here, so that when someone asks something like, "Where are your tickets?", you can just say "We're going to SCLEMP a pair" or whatever, rather than the lengthy "We're going to buy a pair from a scalper" or potentially-confusing "We're going to SCALP a pair".
7) But I digress. We enjoyed our visit to Northwestern on the whole, though it obviously falls short of the kind of experience you can get in Columbus, Madison, or Happy Valley. Walked through the campus, saw a little of downtown (had supper at Chili's, which we both like, since it was across from where we parked). Didn't have a lot of time since I had to be back in Grinnell by Sunday morning, but got a little bit of the flavor. Not much of a bar scene from what I hear, but neither of us are into bars (well, maybe sports bars a little), so that was no big loss. Plenty of interesting shopping in downtown Evanston. Only regret was that the long line at Mustard's Last Stand persuaded us to just get lunch from a guy with a hot dog cart, so we missed out on that critical component of the Northwestern experience (I usually make an effort to partake in the renowned gastronomical options of the various Big Ten venues, such as the Penn State Creamery, or the Thurman Cafe's Thurmanburger in Columbus, which actually isn't really near the stadium, and didn't work out for us anyway when we visited last year, since the grill was broken that day). But I digress again.
8) At this point, I'd love to post a bunch of pictures I took Saturday capturing the Northwestern experience, but since neither of us brought a camera on the trip, that won't be possible. You'll just have to go and see for yourself.
9) When the Badgers played there in 2003, I thought about going, but decided not to because I figured they'd just lose anyway. Great decision, but then they lose the 2005 game anyway. At least it wasn't a total turkey of a game like the one in 2003. In fact, it was very nearly one of the epic victories, sure to be remembered for generations. Darned interception! Oh well.
10) Only Big Ten road venue remaining on my list is Purdue. Maybe I'll make it out to West LaFayette next year to complete the circuit. It would also be nice to attend Badger wins at Michigan, Illinois, and (DAMMIT) Northwestern, so maybe I'll go back to those places someday.
11) Hope this helps, RedWagon.
Posted seperately, here are my updated Big Ten road trip rankings:
1. OSU (2004)
2. PSU (2003)
3. MSU (2000)
4. Iowa (1998, 2002)
5. Michigan (1998)
6. Northwestern (2005)
T7. Illinois (2001)
T7. Indiana (1998)
9. Minnesota (1993, 1999)
NR: Wisconsin (bias) and Purdue (haven't been there).
Wisconsin's road game record for games I've attended is now 6-5, with a losing streak of 1.
posted by RDConz at 5:29 PM
1 Comments:
Thoroughly agree with Number 3 on your list, Ry, but I ain't anybody's sycophant :)
Jake
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