Category: TEAMS

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Game 138: Ohio @ Toledo

Here we have two programs who have experienced recent success, yet are suffering from seasons packed with disappointment. Ohio comes into Toledo having not left the Glass Bowl with a victory since 1967. However, coming off a conference championship game appearance last year, the Bobcats feel that this would be the moment to end the 40 year streak. Toledo has experienced many conference crowns lately, but both the Bobcats and Rockets are facing losing seasons as the halfway mark of the 2007 college football season passes. Tonight would be an opportunity for both teams to regain confidence and possibly avoid a losing campaign. The game would prove to be much more exciting than most may have anticipated.

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Game 137: #19 Wisconsin @ Penn State

The wheels have come off the Bucky Wagon and Penn State holds the lug nuts. On homecoming weekend in Happy Valley, the Badgers played like they ate too much Peachy Paterno ice cream over at the Berkey Creamery. From the first play, it became clear to those wearing red that this Saturday would be a long one. Star tailback P.J. Hill fumbled on the opening play for Wisconsin and Penn State only needed three plays to capitalize. The 109,754 that crammed inside Beaver Stadium would enjoy a stunning blowout of the ranked Badgers and looked to be turning a major corner on their season.

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Game 136: #5 Wisconsin @ Illinois

October is not supposed to be this hot in the Midwest. The Illini aren’t really supposed to be that hot either, but with head coach Ron Zook at the controls, no 90 degree weather is going to keep their goals out of reach. Fifth ranked Wisconsin came in as an underdog to the unranked Illini and few people viewed this as surprising. The Badgers have been winning by a thread each week displaying a defense that had a tendency to spring leaks. The expansion and construction of Memorial Stadium served as a nice metaphor for the entire program as it is moving toward a bigger and better future. Today would be the major turning point.

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Game 135: Michigan @ Northwestern

I am convinced that for Northwestern fans, part of the gameday experience is feeling intimidated on your own campus. This couldn’t be more valid when Michigan comes to visit. On our walk to Ryan Field, we had to squint to find any traces of purple while being distracted by thousands of fans screaming, “GO BLUE!” in unison. Wearing purple myself, I felt threatened and nervous and this was my familiar territory. The stadium turned out to be half and half in attendance for both teams, but if felt more dominated by the Wolverines. Yet, on a northbound train packed with maize and blue, the conductor, knowing completely well that Central Street is the stop for Ryan Field, advised all Michigan fans to exit at the Davis Street stop if they wanted to go to the game. Not a bad prank, especially for Northwestern. Even if outnumbered, I suppose everyone loves to hate the Wolverines.

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OHIO – PEDEN STADIUM

Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio is another hidden gem of college football that few people know about. Only an hour south of Columbus, Athens appears as a cute brick laden college community, but only after the highway dwindles from three lanes, to two, and down to one. The campus is visible from the highway and as soon as the exit for Ohio U is reached, the stadium appears in the near distance. Tents lined up across the street and adjacent to the Hocking River host tailgaters that sprinkle the lawns with enthusiasm. Just a short drive from the stadium is Court Street – an all brick road brimming with fans weaving in and out of shops and filling up on novelties and gear for gameday. Ohio is known for its party-school status and traces of this were evident along Court Street.

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Game 134: Wyoming @ Ohio

Security in Athens, Ohio today seemed to be as penetrable as prosciutto. In anticipation of the contest between Wyoming and Ohio, we executed our usual pregame walk around the stadium. Upon realizing that we had arrived on the side opposite of our seat assignment, I asked an usher if we could reach the other side of the stadium by going around the back way. With a blank look on her face, she pointed toward a rather desolate fenced in alleyway and replied, “I’m not sure, give it a try!” Confused, we followed her instruction, and as we passed the back doors to a concession stand, we realized that we had been led into the security/service entrance. Shortly after, we stumbled upon the entrance to the Wyoming locker room. Additionally, we were already inside the stadium and no one had taken our ticket! To make matters even more unexpected, Wyoming head coach, Joe Glenn, appeared from around the corner, came up to me, and asked, “Do you know which way is east?” Poor guy didn’t realize that he just asked directions from the most directionally challenged person on the planet. Mildly stunned from these events, I stuttered, “I’m not sure, but can I get a picture with you?”…

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Game 133: Duke @ Northwestern

The old phrase, “What goes around comes around” couldn’t have been more fitting for our second game of the day between Duke and Northwestern. Each team exchanged turnovers on their opening plays validating that phrase with immediate gratification. To learn how this phrase applies on a more grand scale, we have to go back 25 years when Northwestern was riding a 34 game losing streak. The Northern Illinois huskies helped to snap that dreaded streak in 1982 causing fans to storm the field, tear down the goal posts, and hoist them into Lake Michigan. Now, in 2007, the Wildcats are in a better place athletically, but Duke is the team that comes in carrying a 22 game monkey on their back. On this day, it would be Northwestern’s turn to help end the pain of a dysfunctional football program. It would be done in heart-halting fashion, as well.

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Game 132: Citadel @ #7 Wisconsin

Appalachian State has sparked belief in the creampuffs of the nation that they have the power to upend any juggernaut on the top 25 slate. The Division I-AA Mountaineers shocked the #5 Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor two weeks ago leaving fans to believe that anything is possible. The Citadel, hailing from the same conference as Appalachian State, harbored similar aspirations entering Madison this past weekend. The #7 Wisconsin Badgers didn?t see the Bulldogs? bite coming. A 21-21 tie at halftime had the Camp Randall crowd booing the teams off the field.

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CENTRAL MICHIGAN – KELLY SHORTS STADIUM

Central Michigan University is an unexpected surprise hidden among the nothingness in the middle of Michigan. Driving into Mount Pleasant provides immediate clues that you have arrived onto a college campus. Folks decked in maroon and gold trickle around the area and it all flows toward Kelly Shorts Stadium where just outside awaits a massive party in preparation for game action. Live bands, loud music, dancing on trucks, and other common college behavior electrifies the area around the stadium. It’s a concentrated gaggle of young adults crammed together making it difficult to walk through and get to the stadium.

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Game 131: Toledo @ Central Michigan

Having just arrived from Ypsilanti and the yawner that transpired there, Mount Pleasant was a pleasant surprise. The drive toward the stadium offered more excitement than the entire game played down at Eastern Michigan. Enthusiasm dripped from all corners of the campus with the epicenter of the action being the stadium parking lot. Nothing could have prepared me for the wild college party that blanketed the area around Kelly Shorts Stadium. Kids dancing on cars, wall to wall bodies, live bands and college spirit absolutely drenched the surroundings. Central Michigan easily could have been confused for a major college team. We couldn’t wait to punch our ticket and pass through the gates.

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