Week 7 Recap - Games of the Year

As often happens in my weekend plans, I had to call a few audibles. The original plan was to attend James Madison University’s Thursday night game against Coastal Carolina, complete with some tailgating. Saturday was supposed to take me to the University of Pittsburgh for their game against Cal. However, fate had other plans. My train from New York to Maryland broke down for three hours, so by the time I arrived at my brother's house in Maryland, we barely made it to the JMU game right after kickoff. I’ll get to the game in a moment. Then, on Friday, I came down with a bug, which forced me to cancel my Pittsburgh trip and instead opt for a low-key Division III game near my brother’s house on Saturday.

The last time I visited James Madison University was during my freshman year of college when we played them in rugby. I don’t remember much about that game, but I do recall one of my high school buddies offering up his dorm room for me and a teammate to crash in. Let’s just say it was a mistake—his room was likely condemned after that weekend. Fast forward to today: walking into the stadium, we were blown away by the scene. The stands were nearly full, and it was a white-out. The student section was electric, and ESPN was there to broadcast the game live.

James Madison recently elevated its program from D1AA to D1A and is a member of the Sun Belt Conference. They have done remarkably well at the hihest level of college football and have already built a winning tradition. Unfortunately, the game wasn’t much of a contest. JMU dominated from the start, with their offense running like a well-oiled machine and capitalizing on Coastal’s mistakes. By halftime, JMU was up 29-7.

Festive Bridgeforth Stadium at James Madison University

After a spirited halftime show from JMU’s massive marching band, the students began streaming out of the stadium. By the end of the third quarter, only about 10% of the student section remained. JMU tacked on 10 more points in the second half, while Coastal remained scoreless. Final score: 39-7, in favor of the Dukes.

On Saturday, we attended Division 3 McDaniel College’s game against Muhlenberg College in Westminster, Maryland. McDaniel boasts one of the most unique tailgating setups in the country despite being a small school with only 3,000 students. As you’ll see in the photos, cars pull right up to the field—nestled in a natural bowl—and fans tailgate while watching the game from their cars and tents. They’ve been featured in multiple publications as one of the top 25 tailgates in the country. It was a picturesque early fall afternoon in Maryland with blue skies. However, the campus must’ve been on fall break because there were no students, no band, and no cheerleaders. The game itself was free to attend.

The unique game day experience at McDaniel College with my brothers and nephew.

For me, the highlights of the game were that Muhlenberg had a player named Tommy Donnelly (same as my nephew) and their 6'5" receiver, who dominated the game and looked like he could easily play for a Division I team. Muhlenberg cruised to a 31-7 victory.

Around the Country
In what many are calling the best day of football this season, epic battles played out across the nation. Penn State took on USC in the LA Coliseum in a rematch of the 2017 Rose Bowl, and once again, it was a thriller. The game ended in regulation with a score of 30-30, sending it into overtime. USC faltered in OT, failing to convert, while Penn State nailed a field goal to win 33-30. Lincoln Riley was, as usual, a bit edgy in the post-game presser.

The South Carolina Gamecocks nearly pulled off a monumental upset, falling to Alabama by just two points in Tuscaloosa. In the ABC Game of the Week, Oregon edged Ohio State 32-31. Ohio State QB Will Howard had a massive blunder by running out the clock instead of downing the ball for a field goal attempt. Meanwhile, in Boulder, Deion’s Buffs made a valiant comeback but still lost by three points to Kansas State, 31-28.

In one of the most exciting games of the season, LSU defeated Ole Miss 29-26 in double overtime. Florida also pushed their rival Tennessee to overtime, but ultimately fell 23-17. Illinois needed overtime to beat a struggling Purdue squad, 50-49, in a barn burner.In the game I was supposed to attend, Pitt edged Cal 17-15 to remain unbeaten on the season. In the Group of Five, Army continued its unbeaten streak, moving to 6-0 by demolishing UAB. For the first time in what feels like forever, both Army and Navy are ranked in the Top 25, each undefeated. And in FCS action, rogue reporter DruBaca reports that his alma mater, Cal Poly, is awful and that their coach needs to be fired.

UNR Tailgaters before the big win over Oregon State

Bieber Award
This week’s Bieber could’ve easily gone to my brother Brian for two offenses: first, forgetting to tell us that his wife had packed us a “tailgate in a cooler” with all kinds of goodies until we were already on our way home from the game on Thursday night. And second, offering to cook me breakfast on Sunday but not extending the offer to his wife, who was sitting right next to me. However, since Brian already won a Bieber earlier this year, I’ll let him off the hook. Instead, this week’s Bieber goes to Kirby Smart, the UGA coach with one of the worst haircuts in the country and an extremely punchable face. During Georgia’s closer-than-expected game against Mississippi State, Smart was caught on camera shoving the Mississippi State quarterback after he ran out of bounds. Was it a mistake? Some will say he was not aware of his actions. I say no way. I’ve watched the video a dozen times—it was egregious. He should face repercussions for assaulting a minor. As someone on my Mount Rushmore of most hated coaches, it gives me great pleasure to award him this week’s infamous Bieber Award.

Ginger Award
Nothing “badass” jumps out this week, so the Ginger gets put back in the cupboard.

Next Week
I’m taking a long-overdue weekend off to hang with my family at the West Coast headquarters. In two weeks, I will be back in Boulder for my final family weekend not only for CU, but my last one as a parent forever.

Happy Tailgating!