Wednesday, January 26, 2011

As good as it gets

For 3+ hours on Sunday, January 23rd, Packers fans sat on pins and needles as a hotly contested battle between football's longest rivals played out on the biggest stage it possibly could. In the end, not even the Bears best QB, Caleb Hanie could work enough magic on the once again stellar defense of the Green and Gold. The Packers marched into Soldier Field and walked right on out with a 21-14 victory in the NFC Championship game, returning to the Super Bowl for the first time in 13 years (has it really been that long?). Once Sam Shields had made his second pick of the day, I could almost collectively hear the entire state of Wisconsin yelling "GET DOWN, YOU IDIOT" while simultaneously screaming hysterically in celebration. Once the rapidly excelling rookie finally hit the sloppy Chicago turf, I released a sigh of relief that has to rank in my personal top five. The Green Bay Packers were going to Dallas to face...fast-forward 4 hours and 8 beers...the Pittsburgh Steelers. No coincidence that the top two defenses in the NFL reached the pinnacle of football match ups.

Now you can say all you want about this game and these two teams...Green Bay seems to struggle to put teams away, or...it was a boring game until the 4th quarter, or...Chicago was down to their third string quarterback because one sprained his MCL and the other should have hung up his cleats five years ago. Any way you look at it, the Packers have been getting the job done lately, and lately happens to be the most important, pressure cooked time of the football season. I mentioned five keys to this game that would help determine the outcome, and it's safe to say that the Packers won 3 1/2 of these battles (stopping Olsen, stopping Hester, stopping Cutler, sort of stopping run game). If only I could've seen into the future and realized that the Packers' failure to game plan for Caleb Hanie would almost cost them a chance at playing in the Super Bowl (can you imagine such a scenario taking place?). There was simply no way that the football Gods were going to allow that one, no matter how hard the Pack tried. We all know about the heroes mentioned numerous times this week (mainly Raji and Shields), but there is one guy that needs to be shown some appreciation, and that guy is punter Tim Masthay. Masthay, let me mind you, DIDN'T EVEN PUNT THE WEEK BEFORE IN ATLANTA! There wasn't a shadow of a doubt that we would have to unleash multiple punts to try and pin Chicago deep in their own territory. Masthay not only did this, but he (for the most part) put enough air under his punts to limit Hester dramatically. Sure, the Packers forced Cutler to mope on the sidelines, limited Greg Olsen and didn't let the Bears' run game beat them (and I can't believe I'm saying this), but one of the worst special teams units out-shined one of the best special teams units and that was flat out the difference in this ball game.

The one key that the Packers allowed the Bears to claim as their own was Aaron Rodgers v. the Bears' defense. A-Rodg certainly had his moments, but you've got to wonder what was running through his head on certain occasions (Urlacher pick, poor play after Peppers hit). It may very well be that Rodgers was a little dazed and confused after getting annihilated by Julius, but his overall struggles hurt Green Bay's chances of putting the game away. Kudos to Chicago's defense, who seemed to figure things out after the first few Packer drives, but not having things figured out right away appear to have cost you a trip to the Super Bowl...how sad. Don't get me wrong; I have a ton of respect for this rivalry and for both teams involved, but my Packer fanhood has no choice but to leak out all over this blog, especially after what just occurred a few days ago. Of course, I will preview the Packers v. Steelers match up in Super Bowl XLV in the coming days, but I have a little bit more to touch on today.

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The other night, I paid a visit to Illinois (before you stop reading this post in disgust, let me explain myself...if you're still upset afterwards, fine). I know I promised that this blog would pertain to Wisconsin sports, but I happen to have a rooting interest in a professional sports team that hails from the Windy City in FIB land. This is the proud franchise of the Chicago Blackhawks (once again, let me explain). This all dates back to a sad time when I was a Freshman in college a mere two years ago when I purchased a video game called NHL 09 (EA Sports). I had heard good reviews about this game, but never really had a vested interest in hockey, mainly because Wisconsin doesn't have a pro hockey franchise. Anyway, I got to playing this game for my Xbox 360 quite often because quite frankly, it was one of the greatest games I ever had the pleasure of partaking in (I also wasn't having much luck with the ladies during these trying times). I quickly learned the odds and ends of the sport and started to try and actually watch more hockey on television (which was challenging seeing as only Versus and occasionally NBC televised NHL games). Still, as difficult as it seemed since I would have to go out of state to find one, I felt the need to choose a team to follow. The natural feeling I got was to root for the team that was located closest to where I lived, and this team was the Blackhawks. I know, I know...you're thinking to yourself "THEY'RE FROM CHICAGO, YOU F****** TRAITOR!" Sorry if you feel that way but you're just going to have to deal with my decision.

(I mean c'mon, the Minnesota Wild? If I have a choice to start from scratch as far as choosing a favorite sports team, I might as well choose a franchise that is proud/has a loyal fan base/has had some past success/is close in proximity. Also, keep in mind that I became a true fan of the Hawks THE YEAR BEFORE THEY WON THE STANLEY CUP. You can call me a lot of things, but a bandwagon fan is not one of them...I take extreme offense to such remarks.)

So this led me to my second out-of-state sporting event experience (1st: Minnesota v. Wisconsin football in October of '09) and first Blackhawks game in my life. I attended the game with my roommates Will and Kenne as well as Will's father (Will is from Northbrook, IL...slightly north of Chicago). The Hawks play in the United Center (just like the Bulls) and let me tell you, this place is crazy huge and crazy awesome. The building can fit 21,000+, and that's how many people filled the UC on the last game before the NHL All-Star break on a Tuesday night. The actual game was a let down as the Blackhawks fell to the aforementioned Wild by a score of 4-2 (making me eat my recent statement), although the Hawks were completely robbed of a goal because of an early whistle and shanked one off the post on a different occasion. As for the overall experience, it was definitely worth it and I had a blast. It was a great atmosphere thanks to a packed house, screaming your lungs out during the National Anthem and celebrating each goal with this song (are both of these obnoxious? Keep in mind the state I've set foot in). Speaking of obnoxious, when I bought a beer from the beer vendor, he looked at my ID and instantly began yelling "CHEESEHEADS!" at the top of his lungs. Almost no one around us seemed to take notice. Probably has something to do with the fact that there's literally nothing anyone can say to me about it thanks to, well, you know. I was disappointed for the Chicago faithful because they had to endure yet another brutal defeat, but hey, you won a Stanley Cup last year and had the Bulls in the 90s...so quit your bitching.

Feelin' SO fly like a Cheesehead.

GO PACK GO...On Wisconsin...Let's go Warriors...Fear the Deer.

1 comment:

  1. Yes it is always a great feeling that our Home team wins after a tough fight & what better way to celebrate the win other than having beer.

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