Last Chance U

 

Netflix had a series for five years titled “Last Chance U” where they followed three of the top Junior College (JUCO) teams in the country. The teams were stocked with players that for various reasons were no longer with Division 1 (D1) programs, sometimes due to academic or legal reasons. Other kids on the team just weren't quite good enough, fast enough, big enough or smart enough coming out of high school and needed the added experience. Almost all of these kids had the goal of getting to or getting back to a D1 program on scholarship. It has been fun watching some of these kids as they have moved on to big time programs and even the NFL. In this day and age, many competitive D1 programs target the JUCO landscape to get kids that are ready to step in on day one and contribute. Why am I talking about this, you ask? Because I decided to go to our local JUCO, Diablo Valley College, to catch the Friday night lights as they took on the #1 team in California, the College of San Mateo. The last time I was at DVC Viking Stadium was many moons ago when De La Salle High School played Evangel Christian from Louisiana during their 152 game winning streak.

 

A one of a kind tailgate, Big #78 left all out there and an actual game day program guide!

My wingman for the night was Dan “The Butcher” Luciano, and we were literally the only two tailgaters in the parking lot before the game. That is if you call a six pack of beer and Jersey Mike’s subs on the tailgate of my F150 a real tailgate. We were excited to see two former stars from our high school team suit up for the DVC Vikings. They did not disappoint as one was a standout on defense (Chip Menard) until a third quarter injury took him out, and the other (John Giagiari) caught eight passes for over 100 yards on offense. San Mateo, however, has many kids being recruited to play at the next level, and it was evident they were the better team. The game was competitive though, and DVC had their chances to keep the game even closer than the final score of 24-7. I seriously recommend the readers of my drivel to go catch a local JUCO game on a Friday night when you’re bored and focus in on the kids who will be playing at the next level of CFB. 

 

DVC's most famous Alum and Booster "Lil John" Maddalon still follows his team.

Around the Country - In the battle for supremacy of the “Glove State” and the Paul Bunyan trophy, lil bro Sparty proved superior over big bro Michigan. They delivered a spanking of sorts in a classic hard hitting Big Ten contest in the cool, wet air of East Lansing. Sparty remains undefeated and in the hunt for a playoff berth. Ohio State looked less than impressive against an average Penn State squad Saturday night, escaping with a win at home. At the world’s largest outdoor cocktail party in Jacksonville, the Georgia defense continued to dominate its opponents by delivering a 34-7 annihilation of the Florida Gators. Auburn is proving to be better than expected as they traveled to Ole Miss and corralled their QB Matt and the Rebels in a tough contest. In the ACC, Wake Forest stayed perfect on the year behind QB 1 Sam Hartman’s 400 passing yards in a thrashing of Duke. The beer-drinking Pitt QB Kennny Pickett threw for over 500 yards, but it was not enough as they were upset by the downtrodden Miami Hurricanes. In the Big 12, Caleb Williams was electrifying as the Sooners played their most complete game of the year by crushing Texas Tech 52-21. Williams threw for 402 yards and six TDs. Baylor remains a threat to challenge OU for Big 12 top dog honors as they came from way back to beat a Texas team that does not know how to close out games. Out West, Oregon remains in the conversation for a playoff spot as they put up big numbers against a struggling Colorado team. I am questioning my investment in that school as I usually pick winners. Two Group of Five schools fell from the ranks of the unbeaten;San Diego State lost to Fresno, and SMU went down to the Cougars in Houston.

Navy Brian wearing Terrapin red! CFB Polygamy is rampant in our family

 Ginger

The original Ging

- No name is mentioned here due to privacy concerns, but I’d like to give a shout out to someone very close to me who just won the biggest battle of her life. She is also an avid fan and one of the most loyal readers of this blog. We are all so happy for you beating the odds that were set against you. Your champion spirit and never-give-up attitude were just as important as the doctor’s incredible skill. So glad to have you off the IR and back on the playing field of life. Now if we could only get your college team to fight as hard as you did. Stay strong always!

 

Bieber

- It was brought to my attention this weekend that previously unbeaten San Diego State has been playing their home games in Carson, CA, outside of LA. The Aztecs have played for the past 40+ years in the old Qualcomm stadium, aka The Murph, in Mission Valley about five miles from campus. The Murph was torn down last spring, and the Aztecs now await the opening of their new stadium next fall. I know the choices are somewhat limited for a replacement venue closer to campus, but Carson is 113 miles away. How the hell are you going to convince students to make that trek on a Saturday in San Diego when it was already hard enough to get them to go to the old venue five miles away? Additionally, alumni and boosters probably have as much interest in going to LA for a game as I do going clothes shopping. The University of San Diego (FCS school) has a nice, intimate football stadium where something could have been worked out. Petco Park where the Padres play downtown could be configured to play football as well. Hell, cross the border to Tijuana and use a bullfighting arena for that matter. But who made the decision to play in LA? Perhaps they will move the entire campus to LA like they did the Chargers franchise. Whoever made that call can also call me for shipping details for their new Bieber trophy. 

 

Next weekend - Back to Boulder for Dads Weekend for the Buffs vs. the Beavers. I will give any frat boy a chance at knocking off the beer funnel champ again! 

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Happy Tailgating!

 

Buffs n Bears oh my!

 

The Tailgate,formed the Monte Vista Empty Nesters Parents Club with several other families and traveled to Bezerkely for the Colorado/Cal game. Pregame festivities took place at Raleighs on Telegraph in their outside beer garden where exceptional Bloody Marys, a few beers, and small plates of tacos and nachos were enjoyed. Thank goodness for the location of the bar as it was the halfway point from where we parked at the absolute bottom of the hill for a 1.3 mile trek uphill to the stadium.

Jollies at Raleighs

Our crew was excited as this game was the battle of the Nates. Both starting linebackers Nate Landman of CU and Nate Rutchena from Cal are graduates of Monte Vista High School where our kids went. We saw both of their families throughout the day. Also, as a tuition-paying parent for a child at CU, it was my duty to attend and root on the Buffs. We had tickets donated by the Vet Tix foundation and our good friend Chris Kenny. With the stadium only ¼ full, we chose to sit together in the south end zone, strategically located near the libation station. Neither team has had a stellar year, so the matchup on paper looked fairly even. As far as the actual game went, Cal dominated from the opening drive. It was a game absent of drama and intrigue. Cal would score 10 quick points to start the action and score 13 more in the second to the Buffs’ 3 for a 23-3 halftime lead. CU would not score in the second half, and Cal would add a field goal for a 26-3 convincing victory. I am pretty sure the Buffaloes offense forgot to get off the bus as they were only able to muster up 105 yards of offense. That is flat out offensive in its own right. Parental duty complete, back to HQ for the night games I went.

A great day at Cal Memorial Stadium

Zeisings, Lucianos, and Nish joined us for the day.

Around the country - In a week of very few marquee matchups, there were still a number of games of note. A record nine overtimes in “not so” Happy Valley provided the winning formula for the Fighting Illini to knock off the seventh ranked Nittany Lions. On the banks of the Hudson, the undefeated Wake Forest Demon Deacons went full blitzkrieg on the Army by putting up 70 points and half a mile of offense. The Army did not surrender easily and put up 56 points of their own in a record-setting day for the highest combined score of the year in college football. Staying in the ACC, Pitt knocked off the faltering Clemson Tigers to improve to 6-1. Pitt and Wake are the cream of the crop in the ACC this year. In Ames, Iowa, the lower ranked but favored Cyclones corralled a victory over the visiting Cowboys from Stillwater, OK. In Tuscaloosa, Alabama had their hands full for three quarters against the Tennessee Vols but managed to leave them in their orange dust in the final set for a decisive victory. Cigars were smoked by the Tide players (a tradition for that game for the winning team). In the Rose Bowl, the Ducks showed quacks in their armor but were able to hang on for a win over a much improved UCLA team. Cincy and Oklahoma both remained undefeated in less than impressive wins against inferior opponents. On Thursday night, Coastal Carolina traveled to Boone, NC, to play Appalachian State only to earn their first regular season loss since 2019. What would a recap be without mentioning that Notre Dame took care of business against their nemesis USC and came away with the W. However, USC tight end and Monte Vista graduate Erik Krommenhoeke did have a stellar game. 

 

Nephew Sean at the Navy Tailgate, Kenny Stabler and Jim Otto at UNLV game and the dapper doctor on his way to Tuscaloosa 

Ginger - I would like to salute the Vet Tix organization that provided us with four of the tickets for our group yesterday. Vet Tix provides tickets to all kinds of sporting and entertainment events to the U.S. Military and Law Enforcement Veterans. Veterans can also donate tickets that they won’t be using for the event they paid for. Other tickets are donated by organizations and private individuals. I have used it several times and have also donated to it. I think it is an amazing organization that provides a benefit to an awesome breed of people. For this, Vet Tix, you are truly badass and this week’s recipient of the prestigious Ginger Award.

Bieber -

So you have a Power Five team struggling a bit this year, but clearly showing signs of improvement. A near miss a week ago against highly-ranked Oregon is telltale that your team is heading in the right direction. This is the type of team that thrives off of home field support and loud fans. With a winnable conference game on the docket, wouldn’t it be nice to have a packed stadium, rowdy student section and a true home field advantage? What else could be more important on a fall Saturday afternoon on a college campus? Apparently everything else was more important to this group. There are only six to seven Saturdays a year where you have a home game. I am speaking of the anemic crowd at Cal memorial stadium on Saturday for the game we attended. As you can see by the pictures above, the stadium was maybe at 25% capacity. The student section may have had an even lower percentage. Where were the alumni as well? We did notice nerds roving around campus before and after the game with backpacks heading to study groups or other cerebral events. We also saw a rally outside of the basketball arena with a flock of students probably protesting microaggressions that hurt their fragile feelings. Even the bars were void of fans during the pregame hours. Where have all the snowflakes gone? So, for abandoning your team in a time of great need, the collective Cal fan base that chose to be somewhere else, I honor you with this week’s Bieber award.

 

Next Week -  It most likely will be a weekend off from a live game, but I will make that decision later in the week.

Happy Tailgating!