Colorado State likely held the most anticipation for getting their first home game of the season underway. Having started the season with a heartbreaking loss to rival Colorado in Boulder and a crushing shutout loss to top ranked USC, playing in front of a friendly bunch of folks could prove to be the best remedy for their woes. The Golden Gophers travel from Minneapolis with an undefeated record attached to their luggage. The Rams may be glad to be home, but Minnesota may have not been the most welcome guest. The Gophers come in with an impressive running game, while Colorado State still searches for corks to plug their leaky defense.
Game 96: Colorado State @ Colorado
Every edge of every seat at Folsom Field would be worn thin by the conclusion of this heart-halting contest. For me, this game would complete a major first in my tour – watching two division one games in one day. Part one of the double header had Cal devouring Air Force in impressive fashion. Tonight’s game served up a heaping helping of hate as the green and gold and black and gold collided in every imaginable way. Flags staked in the ground bearing the CU emblem welcomed fans as they traveled up the Boulder Turnpike toward campus. The energy intensified as Boulder appeared framed breathtakingly against the Rockies. Tailgating and parking was as competitive as on the field action as fans crammed into the city and billows of smoke emanating from grills signaled the opening of a fresh season. Colorado students belted the fight song and interrupted themselves with harsh heckling of CSU fans that passed by. Dusk settled in and the stadium reverberated with anticipation.
AIR FORCE – FALCON STADIUM
Air Force fans traveling along I-25 suddenly experience a traffic jam about two miles from the exit to Falcon Stadium. The cause of the slow crawl becomes evident upon exiting as several military personnel guide cars down different pathways toward the game site. Many security measures have been taken here and an escort by the Air Force is one of them. Open spaces surround your journey to the stadium – all except for one large aircraft that greets you and points in the desired direction.
Game 95: #13 California @ Air Force
September 4th would be a day of many firsts for me. Among those included my first Mountain West Conference game, my first time seeing California, and above all, my first double-header day. This game in Colorado Springs required early alarm bells as kick off commenced at ten in the morning. Following the Cal/Air Force contest, I would be driving up I-25 toward Boulder to be a spectator for the in-state hate fest between Colorado State and Colorado.
Game 94: Wisconsin vs. Auburn
Wisconsin fans poured down I-65 aiming for Nashville and their team’s appearance in the Music City Bowl. Auburn fans had a shorter path to travel and consequently, their fan base outweighed the red and white. The home of country western tunes hosts this bowl game with intense enthusiasm and the city comes alive as the contest is played on New Years Eve.
Game 93: Northwestern vs. Bowling Green
There are many beautiful bowl destinations to imagine following your team to – Miami, Pasadena, Tampa, Detroit…er, Detroit? Yes, the industrial wonderland of Michigan is home to the Motor City Bowl, a game that has not yet even reached adolescence appeared pitiful compared to most of the historic post-season venues.
Game 92: #17 Iowa @ Wisconsin
So much change is developing around Camp Randall Stadium. The historic venue has been undergoing an expensive face-lift intended to expand capacity over 80,000 while adding more luxury press boxes. Can the new changes bring good fortune in the final regular season game? Invitations to New Year’s bowl games hung in the balance as the final conference week commenced. Iowa and Wisconsin only share around one hundred miles worth of border, but it’s enough to develop a sincere hatred for one another. Today’s game only intensifies the discord because the winner gets grabs at a prestigious bowl berth. With both teams coming off convincing victories, confidence saturated both sidelines almost as much as the chilly fog that enveloped Camp Randall Stadium.
Game 91: #21 Michigan State @ Wisconsin
There must have been a deliveryman between quarterback Jim Sorgi and wide receiver Lee Evans because everything Sorgi sent, Evans received. The student section bowed down to Evans as though he achieved deity status with his school record five-touchdown performance. Backup tailback Dwayne Smith packed in a career day with three scores of his own, but his efforts seemed overshadowed by the mystical receiving skills of Lee Evans.
Game 90: #20 Wisconsin @ Northwestern
Nothing flashy in this game. In fact, flashy was traded for abysmally embarrassing. Homecoming in Evanston created a party in the stands for those proudly wearing purple. The conspicuous red that penetrated the stadium hoped to quiet the celebration. However, the teams on the field aided in conveying the monotony.
Game 89: #13 Purdue @ #14 Wisconsin
Purdue opened their highly anticipated season with a mind-bending loss to lowly Bowling Green. The Badgers absorbed a similar fate with an early season stumble against struggling UNLV. It would have been difficult to imagine College Gameday, ESPN’s premier pregame show, coming to Madison on month later to broadcast live before the Boilermakers and Badgers prepared to duel on the field. Sure enough, the show’s celebrated hosts, Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit descended upon Wisconsin because of the astounding resurgence that propelled these two teams into the top fifteen.