Rites of Autumn

It is finally here!!!

GAMEDAY HAS ARRIVED.  To paraphrase a line from one of the great all time movies,

"Is this heaven?  No this is college football..."

       RoA

Just a little over 24 hours...

Well we are just a little over 24 hours until the season gets underway.  LSU at MSU in the SEC opener on ESPN to get it started tomorrow night.  I think I am going to take a few hours off work tomorrow and get the grill out and have a tailgate in the driveway to start the season.  Ribs (I can cook some ribs now), baked beans, potatoes on the grill with a few friends sounds pretty good to me.  May even have a cold beverage or two... Anyone else out there doing a tailgate at home tomorrow to kick off the season?

Got an email from a friend today.  Not a single ticket left for any of LSU's home games this year.  All 7 are sold out; the only way is on the Internet with a credit card with lots of available room or take a chance at the stadium with a big handful of cash.  They love their Tigers deep in the heart of Dixie.  On CBS Sportsline's blog there have been those who have been bashing the SEC.  All I can say is that I have been to or played against every major conference in America; there is none better than the SEC for the overall experience as a player or a fan.  What I do know is that everytime I make it into SEC country, the environment is second to none.  As I have said before on posts within this blog, I love everywhere I go to see college football.

Can you smell them ribs 'a cookin'...  RoA

Any other Big Ten fans hate those early kickoffs?

With the new Big Ten Network it looks like those 11 AM kickoffs (Central Time) are here to stay.  Getting home from a high school game on Friday night late (went to my alma mater's, Geneseo High School, opener last night and didn't get home until 1AM) and then getting up at dawn to get things ready to get to the stadium can be a challenge.  But we all did/will do it for the love of our teams and the game.  Here is a photo of some of our RIVALSflag Road Crew at an early morning breakfast prior to last years Iowa at Illinois game.  Trust me, it was EARLY AM when this was taken.  Our younger members of the Road Crew are troopers and are developing a real love for the pagentry and atmosphere of gameday.  Hopefully this year there won't be too many of those 11 AM kickoffs... 

(click on photo to enlarge)

Kickoff from the 30 yard line; Are they nuts?

The NCAA has instituted a few rules changes for 2007 and for the most part I think they are good, especially from the clock stoppage standpoint.  The new rule that kickoffs will occur from the 30 yard line I have a problem with.  Take it from a guy who used to set the "wedge" in front of the deep guys on kickoff returns.  Giving the kickoff coverage team another 5 yards to build up speed to bust up the return team's wedge IS going to result in more injuries.  As a wedge setter, you are taught to retreat until you are 10 yards in front of the return man and you hold that position until you hear a "go" call.  You are totally stopped, waiting for the ball to come down into the returners hands.  While you are stopped dead in your tracks, the return team's coverage is building up momentum as they sprint downfield to cover the kick.  The collisions were bad before the new rule; they will be more violent with this rule in place.  I realize that kick returns are exciting and add something to the game.  With this new rule they better increase scholarships by about 4 because that is approximately how many guys teams will lose (for sometime, maybe not the whole season) throughout the year to concussions, broken bones, etc.  Why don't they just reinstate the "chop block" outside the tackle box if they don't REALLY care about players welfare.  Joe Tiller of Purdue has been very critical of this new rule.  Thanks Joe for sticking up for the kids and their welfare. 

RoA

Dog Days of August and Fall Camps

Heat index here continues to be in the mid 100's.  Sometimes I cannot believe that kids are out there in full pads getting after it.  But they are and for that I commend them.  The boys of fall pay a price for our Saturday fall enjoyment.  I don't know of any other sport that endures the climatic extremes that football places upon its participants and fans.  Ohio State at Illinois in 2002 was incredibly cold; one of the coldest games I ever experienced at Memorial Stadium.  The Playboy magazine labeled "toilet bowl" game of 1978 between Illinois and Northwestern was a scorcher.  Field temperatures were in the 117 degree range; we put tin foil in our shoes (shiny side down) to reflect some of the heat away from our feet to prevent heat blisters (ended in a 0-0 tie, imagine that was why Playboy gave it the name).  Kids all over America from junior high school to colleges and universities are out there today trying to get better for the upcoming season.  I salute them; it is not always easy but nothing worthwhile ever is.

Illinois had some kids nicked up in their first scrimmage last Saturday.  An already thin receiving corps has been a lot thinner the past few days but according to published reports none of the injuries were serious.  Missouri had their starting TB go down with a knee last week.  Those two teams meet in a monster opener for both schools.  Let's hope both squads are fit and ready to go September 1 at the Dome in St. Louis.

Anyone care to chime in on any other camp news of note, I'd appreciate all the info we can get to our few but loyal readers of The Rites of Autumn...

RoA

Illini football squad in the weight tent at Camp Rantoul...

(photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Fighting Illini weblog)

Remember our Troops

I kick myself for not doing this earlier in this blog's life.  I have not said anything about the brave men and women who protect us from the dangers that lurk within and outside the borders of this great land.  Without those that protect our freedoms, going to a sporting event safely would not be possible.  I know our extended family has had members serve in both Iraq and Afghanistan recently.  Members of our tribe have served from WWII to Korea and Vietnam.  We are very proud of them all; some made the ultimate sacrifice for this land and our way of life that we sometimes take for granted.  As you go about your day and life, all I ask is that you take a moment and say a prayer that the greatest head coach watch over each and every one of our men and women as they do the work that needs to be done to keep us safe from the evil that lurks all over the planet.  As I write this, our troops our enduring tough work all over the world; we have all seen the pictures of the humble giving they provide to people from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.  They are the best and deserve our thoughts and prayers for their courage, sacrifice and bravery; far, far from home.

Photo taken late spring 2007 in front of our homestead.  God Bless America!

Week 2: Oregon at Michigan

Finalized plans for Week 2.  The GMC RIVALSflag van will be flying Michigan RIVALSflags in Ann Arbor for the Oregon game.  This is the first game of a 3 game stretch for the Wolverines that will tell volumes about how the season will go.  A young defense will probably need to be carried early by the potent Michigan offense with their 3 All-American candidates in Jake Long, Chad Henne, and Mike Hart.  WIth what happened at Oregon a few years back when the Wolverines made the long trek to the Great Northwest, I am sure the boys in Maize and Blue will be ready.  Looking very much forward to it; haven't been in the "Big House" since I last played there in 1980.  Bo made sure that we paid that day for Illinois firing his former DC Gary Moeller.  In fact on the Friday prior to the game and prior to our "supposed" workout, Bo and Mike White got into a lengthy and profanity laden argument in the tunnel leading down to the field.  According to our itinerary it was our time to have the field but MIchigan was on the field, doing their Friday thing.  Coach White asked the manager assigned to us to talk to Bo.  I can still see Bo walking up the tunnel, the sunlight from the field backlighting him as he made his way to us.  When he finally arrived (he was in no hurry), Coach White informed him that we were supposed to have the field and Bo responded that "the Michigan team will have the field for the next 45 minutes to an hour and I don't care what your *&%$^& schedule says."  Needless to say it went downhill from there.  Both men laid into each other but the bottom line was we went back into our locker room and got dressed without working out in the stadium.  The next day was not much better for the guys in Orange and Blue; MIchigan 45 Illinois 14.