Never Forget

I get it. The Wisconsin Badgers and the Green Bay Packers are a combined 12-0. It's awesome and surreal, don't get me wrong, but I'll have plenty of time to talk about the success of Wisconsin football. For now, the Brewers should get your undivided attention for one last time this year.

Last night, when the clock struck midnight on the Brewers' magical run, it hit me like a ton of bricks. I've sat through countless playoff defeats from the Packers, the Badgers, the Bucks and the Golden Eagles as a die-hard fan of Wisconsin sports, but NOTHING has ever hurt as bad as losing game 6 of the National League Championship Series to the hated St. Louis Cardinals. I sat with my head in my hands for several minutes, trying to allow all the unforgettable memories from the past season override the agony and despair of the season being over at the hands of a team who I hope a rivalry will continue to grow with. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who questioned the decision to start the lifeless corpse of Shaun Marcum or the idea to go with a lineup that didn't give the Brewers the best chance to win, but the fact of the matter is that the Brew-City Bombers ran into a buzz-saw Sunday night. The Cards were the hotter team, but not necessarily the better team...I refuse to acknowledge that. From the day that Nyjer Morgan went to Twitter to begin a mini war of words and tell St. Louis to "have fun watching the Brewers in October from their couches," the Cardinals went on a tear. Whether you want to blame it on what Plush would consider some friendly trash talk, managers like Tony LaRussa and players like Albert Pujols don't need to be given any extra motivation to succeed, and that's exactly what they've done. Succeed. Succeed beyond expectations.

As difficult as this may sound right now, none of those things should be what defines the 2011 Milwaukee Brewers. The expectations were higher than ever heading into April because of acquisitions like manager Ron Roenicke, Morgan, Takashi Saito, Shaun Marcum (ugh) and Zack Greinke, and they got even higher towards the end of July and the beginning of August by adding all-time single season saves leader Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez and utility man Jerry Hairston Jr. All of these additions were somehow pulled off without losing any core players like Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, Corey Hart, Rickie Weeks and Yovani Gallardo, although the farm system was left almost completely decimated. But just like when the Brewers traded everything and the kitchen sink for C.C. Sabathia three years ago, fans supported the moves. They were all-in, just like General Manager Doug Melvin. Naturally, I made some predictions:

1. Shaun Marcum will win 15 games. (WRONG, although a lack of run support didn't help)
2. Prince Fielder will either collapse under the pressure of a contract year or have a career year because of the motivation of a contract year...then walk after '11. (RIGHT (so far), it was a career year without question...Prince has yet to walk though)
3. Nyjer Morgan will eventually become the main guy in center field after starting the year in a platoon with Carlos Gomez and the Crew once again realizing Go-Go sucks. (RIGHT, although by the end of the year I was calling Gomez's name)
4. John Axford won't top his 2010 season in the closer role but do enough to stay in it. In addition, set-up man Zach Braddock will be an absolute beast. (PAINFULLY WRONG for obvious reasons)
5. The Brewers will rank in the bottom five in the MLB in defense. (BARELY WRONG, they were 24th, but are currently dead last in postseason defense)
6. Zack Greinke will not perform as well as expected, but Yovani Gallardo will succeed thanks to a lack of pressure. (KIND OF RIGHT)
7. The Brewers will acquire a key bench player mid-season. (RIGHT, Hairston)
8. Manager Ron Roenicke will win NL Manager of the Year. (STAY TUNED)
9. Mark Rogers will be called up at some point during the season and make some key spot starts...maybe even earn the fifth spot at some point. (WRONG, Rogers was injured/we didn't end up needing any rotation replacements)
10. Sergio Mitre will make one start and then find his way to the bullpen, where he had some success last year with the Yanks. (WRONG, but who cares)
11. Mat Gamel will not be touched in the minor leagues (barring injuries at the major league level), but will replace Prince Fielder in 2012 at first base. (WRONG, unfortunately, but he may be the opening day guy in 2012 at first)
12. Milwaukee Brewers 2011 record: 91-71, 1st place in NL Central (PRETTY RIGHT, 96-66, a franchise record in wins, was enough for 1st in the Central)

Some of these predictions are still pending, but let's move on.

Roenicke brought a lot of excitement to the table and it took him some time to feel out the cast of all-star players and the situation he walked into, but any realistic fan knew there would be some growing pains. He had an aggressive style of managing, which naturally excited Brewer fans, and eventually he figured out the right assortment of players to put on the field and implemented strategies in certain situations once he got a feel for the club. It was a slow start to the season, partly due to a lack of chemistry, but mostly due to injuries to several key players. Players came back, and things started to click, especially once Greinke returned from his freak basketball injury. They hung around the top of the division for the next few months, and the post-All Star game additions Melvin made were enough to jump-start the Crew once again, despite the gruesome ankle injury Rickie Weeks sustained, and give them a comfortable edge in the NL Central. Throw in the inspired performances of potential MVPs Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder, the leadership in the rotation of Yovani Gallardo, the shut-down closing ability of John Axford, and the Brewers simply showing more will to win than their opponents - many times in heart-stopping fashion - and that in a nutshell is why the Brewers landed in the postseason.

So Milwaukee, the smallest pro baseball market in the league, drew the Arizona Diamondbacks in round one, a team they battled with until game 162 to earn home-field advantage in the opening round of the playoffs. I was fortunate enough to earn the right to buy tickets to game 2, but decided to pass. Ha. Yeah, right. They won that game for me along with game 1 thanks to a dominating performance by our ACE, Yovani Gallardo. Of course, the road woes crept back into the minds of the Brewers and as much as I felt it wouldn't happen, there would be a game 5 at Miller Park. Speaking of Miller Park, if that stadium could seat 100,000 people, it would have been filled each and every game this postseason. The SMALLEST MARKET in baseball. What about Chase Field in Phoenix, you ask? Game 4, there were roughly 10,000 empty seats in the D-Back's home ballpark. That's embarrassing. Also, it gave me the feeling that the Brewers deserved to win this series, even after the lackluster performances by Marcum and veteran lefty Randy Wolf. The night of Saturday, Oct. 8 rolled around and I was planning on watching the final game of the series either on my own coach or from one of the many bars located in Oshkosh, but then I remembered something. Kyle's mother, who had purchased four standing room only tickets to game 5, was giving her tickets to Kyle, which meant I had to consider if I wanted to or would be able to go. Of course I wanted to go, and thanks to the gracious gesture of my roommate Will, I drove his van down to Milwaukee Sunday morning for the biggest baseball game in Milwaukee in decades. Flash forward to about 7:30 PM...

Can I even explain this moment? Probably not. Gomez, a defensive replacement, singles to left. He takes second on a wild pitch. Plush knocks one up the middle, Go-Go scores the NLDS-clinching run. Hysteria ensues. The Keg was flowing. If there is one moment of my young life that I'd never forget, it was being at Miller Park when Gomez crossed home and the ten minutes that followed, fans going absolutely nuts, the building maybe the loudest it had been at any point during the actual game. Unforgettable to the maximum meaning of the word. I embraced tens of hundreds of random people and made sure to snap some pictures, capture the moment on video and grab a few pieces of confetti for keepsake. I know the Brewers would eventually lose in six games the next series, but being there for that moment might just make up for it alone. The only thing I missed as a result of attending game 5 was T-Clutch shouting obscenities into the TBS microphone held by Sam Ryan. Shouldn't have been standing there, Sam.

Most of you who talk to me regularly about baseball, are friends with me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter probably already know what I'm about to tell you about the Cardinals/Brewers suds series II, but I'll go through it nevertheless. After the first few games, it was apparent who wasn't going to help contribute to the Brewers' run at a World Series, and those names included Corey Hart (slumping at the plate, useless in the field), Nyjer Morgan (one of the most clutch hits in Brewer history, I know, but facing the same struggles as Hart), Rickie Weeks (simply not healthy enough to contribute in any way) and Shaun Marcum (completely out of gas). Marcum's performance in game 2 was hard to watch, but not as hard to watch as in game 6. Usually, when you give up more runs than record outs, you're in trouble. The fact of the matter is that Marcum had never gone past 200 innings in his career and Roenicke was leaving him for dead by putting him out there in an elimination game. Sure, he had a very short leash...if even a leash at all...but he never should have been out there in the first place, and it was enough to set the tone for how the Crew's final game in 2011 would end up. And of course, Hart, Plush and Weeks were all out there for game 6 as well. What should have the stubborn Roenicke done for game 6? I know it sounds extreme and idiotic, but...

RF Morgan, CF Gomez, LF Braun, 1B Fielder, 3B Hairston, SS Betancourt, C Lucroy, 2B Counsell, P Gallardo/Estrada

Gallardo on three days rest? But it's only three days rest! And then he can't pitch in game 7! Shut up. Even if Gallardo can't go here, pitch Estrada. He was a gem spot starter.
Counsell over Weeks? He hit .170 on the season! Yeah, but the Brewers needed defense, and Counsell >>> Weeks in that regard. Oh, and Weeks hit .146 in the playoffs.
If you were against playing Plush, why is he in there? Because he's the best DEFENSIVE option in right, plus there needs to be someone in the lineup with lead-off experience.
Hairston in the 5 hole? And Yuni in the 6? Why mess with that chemistry towards the bottom of the lineup? Sorry, you're right. Protecting Prince isn't that important.

And if you even question having Gomez in there because it was against a righty, don't even look at me.

I hated the idea of starting Mark Kotsay in game 3 and then I hated not having him in there in game 5. I hated how our defense sucked, making Greinke's game 5 start look bad when it really wasn't. I hated how Roenicke wouldn't give Taylor Green a chance to at least pinch-hit instead of continuously marching out McGehee (why even put him on the roster then?). I hated a lot of the decisions that were made in the NLCS, only proving why 29 years of experience managing trumps one year. I appreciate what guys like Marcum, Hart, Weeks and Plush did for us all season long and they were a HUGE reason why the Brewers got to the point they did, but just because someone helps you get to where you are doesn't mean they have to go the distance with you. Man, I sound like a dick. No wonder I don't have a girlfriend.

So what's next? First things first, I don't think I can bring myself to watch a single inning of the World Series. I said the same thing in 2007 after the Packers' depressing loss to the Giants in the NFC Championship game about the Super Bowl, but I watched it. Not this time. I hate the Cardinals way too much and not seeing the Brewers in the first World Series of my lifetime just hurts too much. Plus, I really have some school work to catch up on after watching all this playoff baseball. Once the World Series comes to a close, we as Brewer fans have a few things to root for:

Ryan Braun or Prince Fielder (or both) winning the MVP award.
Ron Roenicke, despite his joke of a managing effort in the NLCS, winning the NL Manager of the Year.
The Brewers front office continuing to push forward and making this team as competitive as possible.
Fielder returning in a Brewer uniform in 2012 without crippling our payroll for the next decade.

For as greedy as I am, I would be happy to see two of these things happen and for as awesome as personal accolades are, I hope those two things are the last two listed. What else will be going down as soon as free agency hits in a few weeks?

Yuni B will probably be gone.
Craig Counsell will be gone.
K-Rod will probably be gone.
Haiston will probably be gone.
Hawkins will probably be gone.
Saito will probably be gone.
Kameron Loe might be gone.

Greinke will be back.
Marcum will be back.

Prince Fielder. Sigh...this is probably it, Brewer fans. Over six years of the big fella crushing baseballs, cracking that boyish smile in the dugout and celebrating with Ryan Braun after each home run. Not sure if you caught this, but Prince still hasn't left out returning to Milwaukee according to the post-game interview he gave last night. His exact words were "the amount of fun...it's just been the best, easiest year I've ever had for me mentally, just going out everyday and playing hard. This year's been awesome...HOPEFULLY I'LL BE HERE FOR MORE YEARS TO COME, but if not, it's been cool."

Yeah...that's just me clinging on to the last string of hope. The way everyone got choked up when the team left the clubhouse for the final time this season, especially Casey McGehee, who's son has cerebral palsy. Fielder was especially supportive, and just thinking about the embrace they had before Prince left for good is bringing tears to my eyes as I type this. The tone of players, coaches and Prince himself give off the impression that one of the greatest players in Brewers franchise history is walking into greener pastures, if you catch my drift. If this is indeed the case and the Brewers, who will certainly make a strong push to bring back Fielder's services, are unable to re-sign Prince, then that money should be used to fill other voids that will undoubtedly be left. Despite losing so many studs from the farm, there are still promising youngsters that will have their shot to make the big league club next season and free agents brought in to do the same. As much as I want to get into that discussion right now, I'll save it for another time.

Right now, let's just remember what the 2011 Milwaukee Brewers and Prince Fielder gave us: the highest of highs and at times, the lowest of lows. Moments we'll never forget. The deepest playoff run in 29 years. And in Fielder's case, six-plus years of the greatest display of power to march through Wisconsin in...well...perhaps ever. What a ride it was, and maybe what a ride it will continue to be. Just like back in '08, now that I've gotten a taste, I want the whole thing. This will forever be the sport I love the most, and it's still hard to accept that I must move on. The success in Madison and Green Bay will help me cope. Okay. We've given the Brewers the time they've deserved, but while you're tuning in to football, basketball, hockey or any other sport this winter, NEVER FORGET the ride a group of 25 men gave you last summer, and remember how we all enjoyed every second of it.

Sports are amazing.

See you next year.

And Here. We. Go.

Consider this the "mega-blog post" of all blog posts because there's A LOT to get to. I've finally come to the realization that this will be my last post ever. No, I'm not willingly quitting the blog. I'm accepting its fate. Just take a look at what I have on my plate this weekend.

Saturday:
12:00 AM - My 22nd birthday
1:07 PM - Arizona Diamondbacks @ Milwaukee Brewers, Game 1 NLDS
7:00 PM - #8 Nebraska Cornhuskers @ #7 Wisconsin Badgers

Sunday:
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM - Recover, get picked up by from Oshkosh by Mommy
12:00 PM - Round up the troops for Game 2 of the NLDS
1:30 PM - 3:00ish PM - Tailgate the s*** out of the Miller Park parking lot
3:15 PM - Denver Broncos @ Green Bay Packers
3:37 PM - Arizona Diamondbacks @ Milwaukee Brewers, Game 2 NLDS

Uh huh. Yeah. This one's gonna be a doozy. Before I look ahead to what's about to completely rock my world and probably change the course of my life forever, I'd like to recap what happened in the past even though it's impossible to change. I'll start with the Wisconsin Badgers' final pre-conference tuneup against poor old South Dakota. The Coyotes (pronounced "kai-otes") I'm sure were paid a whole lot of green to march into the vice grip of Camp Randall Stadium and to be perfectly honest, I don't recall exactly what the final score was. What I do remember is Russell Wilson and Nick Toon hooking up over and over and over and me beginning to think that Toon has the makeup of a pro wide receiver. I know it was against South Dakota, but there's no question Wilson has found his favorite target with Jared Abbrederis being a solid number two option and tight end Jacob Pedersen eating up the redzone. This is probably the most I've ever talked about the air attack of the Badgers. Don't worry. Montee Ball is still there. James White is still there. The run game is still the bread and butter for this offense.

The Badgers now face their first test of the season, and oh, what a test it is. Nebraska makes its Big Ten conference play debut and no way was the Big Ten going to allow the Cornhuskers to play the Indiana Hoosiers back in Lincoln to help them get acclimated with their new conference. Hell no. You guys get to play a night game...in Madison...against a top ten team...with College Gameday in town. Have fun with that. In all seriousness, though, this game is going to take a four quarter effort from the Badgers offense and most importantly, their defense, in order to escape with a victory. The number one unit for Wisconsin hasn't given up much this season as far as points are concerned and kind of have that bend-but-don't-break mentality...that phrase is really starting to become cliche, but I'm too lazy to think of a better descriptor. Anyway, it'll be interesting to see how the D handles Nebraska's Taylor Martinez, a sophomore dual-threat quarterback. There's no denying that the Huskers can put points on the board, but their defense has been unimpressive and with the second most efficient passer in the nation and one of the best running back duos there is, Wisconsin should be able to exploit this weakness. Sure, it's hard to gauge just how impressive the Badgers are from top to bottom because they haven't played anyone yet, but what about Nebraska? Their most difficult opponent to date has been a home date with middle of the Pac-10 team Washington (see what I did there?) and they gave up 38 points to the Huskies. The most Wisky gave up thus far is 17 to UNLV with most of those points coming in garbage time. I think the Badgers have the edge on offense, on defense and in location. Looking forward to watching the game on my couch enjoying a few cold ones, although I do envy those who will be in the house at the game that has produced the most coveted ticket in Wisconsin's history. Go Bucky.

In case you forgot (which I'm sure you didn't...just needed a transition), the Chicago Bears foolishly believed that they would be able to knock off the Packers in Soldier Field for the second straight year in week 3, but the Packers would have nothing of it. They took care of Da Bears 27-17 in a game that was never really all that close. Green Bay never relinquished their lead after Aaron Rodgers found Greg Jennings what seemed like 15 times on the first drive, leading to a touchdown catch by Jermichael Finley. I'm not going to give a play-by-play because I know everyone saw this one, but I would like to point out a couple of performances that shouldn't go unnoticed. First of all, I understand that Finley's performance didn't exactly fly under the radar, but did you notice how he was getting his scores? The Bears' secondary was so afraid of Rodgers throwing up the fade in the corner of the endzone to Sirmichael that they forget he can just cut inside on a slant and find himself wide open. Man, talk about a dilemma for future opposing defenses. Are they really going to have to focus two guys on our tight end to avoid him beating us? Probably, and I don't know why more teams do it. After all, Finley is the Packers' only real threat through the air and...wait a minute...you're telling me Green Bay has five wide receivers that are good enough to start for any other team in the National Football League? Oooooo. That sucks, rest of league. Good luck with that one. And if that's not enough, Ryan Grant is kind of starting to rekindle that old flame inside as he rushed 17 times for a convincing 92 yards, although he did suffer a bruised kidney and could be held out of the Broncos game as a precautionary measure. That's fine by me, because James Starks can then take over and maybe we would even get to see a little of the rookie, Alex Green. I mean, c'mon, let's be real...it's the Denver Broncos coming into town. I think we'll survive. The only downer about the weekend I'm about to experience is that I'll miss the Packers' game in its entirety because of the scheduled time of Game 2 that I HAVE to attend. But I think I'll get over it. I mean, c'mon, let's be real...it's the Denver Broncos coming into town. Quick shout-outs to Morgan Burnett (2 picks against the Bears, you the man Morgan), and injured Packers offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga (glad the knee injury isn't anything serious, get well soon), defensive end Mike Neal (take it slow, buddy) and linebacker Frank Zombo (apparently 100 percent now). Go Pack.

Get this, everybody. It'll be October 1st on Saturday, and the Brewers will still be the talk of the state; at least in my mind. Why's that? Well, the Milwaukee Brewers have stolen the hearts of Wisconsin because of their potent 1-2 punch in the middle of the lineup, an outspoken and fiery competitor who gives the best interview in sports...other than the mustache aficionado John Axford, a team that set the franchise record in wins with a 96-66 record and obtained home field advantage in the first round. But most importantly, we're here today because of a competent starting rotation and a bullpen with defined roles. I remember 2008 quite vividly, and I'm in the same boat as many when I say that I was just happy that the Brewers reached the playoffs. Whatever happened after that was gravy. I'm embarrassed to an extent to admit that, but...it was the Brewers in the POSTSEASON. It hadn't happened before in my lifetime...by a long shot. What I will always remember most about the Brewers' first playoff appearance in 26 years is Ryan Braun's game clinching go-ahead 2-run homer in the bottom of the 8th against the rival-Chicago Cubs, then watching the New York Mets fall to the Florida Marlins to give the Brewers the NL Wild Card position. The champagne started to flow, hilarity ensued and tears flowed from my eyes. Seriously. Don't judge. Three years later, albeit about a week earlier than in '08, Braun once again stepped to the plate in a 1-1 ball game with a chance to clinch a playoff berth and what happened? Of course. Braun bashed one out to deep center for a 3-run homer and the Brewers were NL Central Divison champs. All that was left to do was root for the Braves to hold onto the Wild Card position (they didn't...that honor belongs to the hated Fightin' LaRussas) and cling onto the number two seed so that the Crew had home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Despite the best efforts of the baseball gods, Milwaukee earned the two seed and will host the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Divisional Series beginning on Saturday.

I'm not sure if anyone wanted that two seed worse than I did. In case you weren't aware, I was randomly selected out of over 190,000 entries to have the OPPORTUNITY to purchase postseason tickets to a Brewers' home playoff game. When I opened my email last Saturday and saw the "NLDS Ticket Opportunity: Congratulations" subject heading, I went completely bonkers, immediately texted longtime friend/fellow sports enthusiast/friend of the blog Kyle and we held about a 15 minute conversation screaming "Oh my GOD" back and forth to each other. There was nearly an identical conversation that took place last Friday night (good song) after the Beer Makers clinched a playoff spot. The email told me to follow a link and enter a code on Tuesday, beginning as early as 9 AM. I got in the waiting room. I was selected instantly. I nabbed those left field bleacher seats. The only aspect that poked at me was that I bought tickets for the 2nd home game rather than the first. Why? Because two of the people I would be bringing with me to the game go to Madison and the first home game was potentially going to fall on October 1st (enough said). So what was the problem? Well, what if the Brewers hadn't gotten the two seed? They would be on the road the first two games, then return to Miller Park for game three. It would've been unlikely to happen, but what if the Brewers got swept in three? I'd be stuck with tickets for game four. No playoffs for me. Someone would surely die. Thank goodness for the will of the Crew and the managerial skills of Ron Roenicke to help lead Milwaukee to that coveted two seed and restore comfort to my insides.

So it'll be 17-game winner Yovani Gallardo, the Brewers unprecedented ace no matter what you tell me, against 21-game winner Ian Kennedy, a former Yankees reject who appears to have rejuvenated his career. Arizona is just as hot if not hotter than the Brewers and won the season series over Milwaukee, 4-3. It's all out the window now. Playoff baseball is a totally different monster. Now we wait for the Crew to announce their playoff roster on Saturday morning as well as the game 2 starter, who we can only hope is Zack Greinke. If you don't hope it's Greinke, here's why you should: the Zack Attack is 11-0 at Miller Park this season and the Brewers are 15-0 when he starts at home. 15-0! Holy, man. I know it would be his second start on three days rest, but he didn't go as deep into the game on Wednesday as he could have and my feeling is that he will be able to talk his way into a start on Sunday. Grienke at home >>>>>>>>>>>>> Greinke on the road. 'Nough said. Go Crew.

On a lighter note, I went to see the movie "Moneyball" a few hours ago and it basically rocked my socks off. For a baseball nerd like me and a stats nerd like me, I was hooked from the very beginning and the emotional roller coaster that Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill lead me on helped me forget that it was over two hours long. Every single minute of that movie was worth it. I hate to hype up a film and cause anyone who plans on seeing it to have high expectations going in, but it's that good. Then again, that's just me talking. I HIGHLY recommend it, baseball fan or not. It goes beyond baseball and that's what helps make this film so special.

Well, guys...it's been nice knowing ya. I hope the state of Wisconsin has braced itself for what's about to take place this weekend, because I have. That's for damn sure.

Duhhhh...WINNING

What a week for Wisconsin sports. I can't remember a more exciting time to be a sports fan in Wisconsin. Well, maybe that whole Super Bowl thing last February, but now we have multiple teams that are legitimate in their respective sports. I challenged the Brewers a week ago to step it up and trim that magic number down to about four and whaddaya know; it's four. The Philadelphia Phillies did the Crew a favor by beating the Cardinals once this weekend, but the Beermakers took care of their own business and won four of five games during the week, including a sweep in Cincinnati, to basically wrap things up in the Central. Along with the Brewers recent success, the Wisconsin Badgers and Green Bay Packers won games that they should win, albeit the Pack didn't do it in the most convincing fashion. At least we haven't seen either team drop a game this fall. Let's hope it stays that way.

I'll begin with Wisky, who brought a bunch of cheeseheads with them down to Chicago and Soldier Field to play a "neutral" field game against potential dangerous mid-major Northern Illinois. You might think that my sarcastic use of the word "neutral" meant that I felt NIU would have an unfair advantage as far as fan support because they were playing in their own backyard. You'd be mistaken. Badger fans were in the majority Saturday afternoon and Wisconsin took care of business by defeating the Huskies 49-7. Northern Illinois didn't stand much of a chance after Wisconsin pulled away for good from a 7-7 tie midway through the first half. I'm guessing the Badgers looked good - apparently the MAC had television rights for this game and therefore it wasn't televised in my neck of the woods. Sure, I could have walked down the street and watched on ESPN3.com, which is free on college campuses, but I decided it wouldn't be worth my time. That, and I'm a lazy piece. What I got out of watching gamecast on ESPN is that Russell Wilson and Montee Ball are still viable Heisman candidates, especially Wilson, and that the Badgers' defense is doing a good job of keeping teams out of the endzone. So now Wisconsin stands at 3-0 in preseason college football and faces one more joke of an opponent before we reach the big test: Nebraska coming into Camp Randall for arguably one of the biggest games in school history. Oh yeah, and it's on my birthday. We'll see whether or not my birthday combined with either a depressing loss or an inspiring win powers my binge drinking Saturday night. Just kidding, mom!

Fortunately on Sunday, I actually got to WATCH football rather than follow it on the internet when the Packers took the field at Carolina. If this one didn't scream "trap game" going in, I don't know what did. Low and behold, the Pack started off about as bad as you can by letting Cam Newton walk down the field (with some pretty impressive throws, mind you) and jump ahead 7-zip. If that wasn't bad enough, upstart rook Randall Cobb ran into the back of his own teammate returning the ensuing kickoff and coughed up the football. 10-0. Then it was a three-and-out for the offense and the Panthers' offense had the ball back once the first quarter came to a close. That's right. Green Bay's offense was on the field for three plays in the first quarter. THREE. PLAYS. Ouch. But after the Packers' D was able to limit the Panthers to a field goal again, the O kicked things into high gear.

After Aaron Rodgers hooked up with Jermichael Finley what seemed like 15 times, John KUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHN punched it in after dropping a touchdown and it was a ball game. The offense absolutely exploded in the third quarter, racking up four scoring drives. Unfortunately, only one of those drives resulted in a touchdown...the first one, which took under three minutes and ended with a wide open Greg Jennings hauling in a 49-yard touchdown. Even though the Packers were unable to bring the hammer down on their next three drives, the Panthers started turning the ball over...a lot. For as awful as the Packers' defense looked early in the game, particularly Chuck Woodson covering Steve Smith, they made up for it and then some. Charles "In Chuck We Trust" Woodson picked off Cam-not-really-the-man-especially-in-the-red-zone on the first second half Panther possession and then recovered a Smith fumble on their next possession to make up for his lackluster start. After it was 20-13 Packers, Newton carelessly threw another pick, this time to safety Morgan Burnett. 23-13. Game's over, right?

Not so fast, my friend (Lee Corso voice). All of a sudden, the Panthers were knocking on the door inside the GB 5-yard line down by just a touchdown. But it was fourth down and Clay Matthews smelled blood, bringing down a scrambling Newton...all he does is make huge plays..before the goal line to get the ball back in A-Rodg's hands. Rodgers hits Jordy Nelson on a slant route for a rather exhilarating 84-yard score...Jordy's only catch of the game, by the way...and that was your dagger. Sure, Newton racked up a bunch of meaningless garbage time yards through the air, but he looked like a rookie in many ways. Also, there was no Tramon Williams, no Frank Zombo and no Nick Collins after a scary play in which Collins' neck got jammed, leaving him to be carried off on a stretcher. Thankfully, the news is promising regarding Collins, and the Packers beat those pesky Panthers 30-23 to improve to 2-0. Never a dull moment in Titletown. Week 3 presents a matchup with Da Bears in Soldier Field. If they can do half as well as Bucky did yesterday and get either/both Collins and Tramon-man Williams back, the Pack should be in good shape. Then again, losing against the Bears last season in week 3 didn't exactly turn out to be the end of the world...hmmm...

Saving the best for last (in my opinion), the Brewers eliminated any doubt in the minds of their fanbase...which honestly shouldn't have been lingering around in the first place...and trimmed their magic number down to 4. I'm sorry. There actually IS still some doubt. ESPN currently has their "% chance of making the playoffs" at 99.9. Don't breathe easy just yet! To make you feel better, it's now a 6.5 game lead over the Cardinals for the division crown, and if the Crew really needs to look somewhere for motivation, I've got a couple places. First, that two seed would be nice to obtain. They have a two game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for that number two seed and if they were to relinquish that spot, they would have to face the Phillies - again - in the first round of the playoffs with no home field advantage. Should they hold on, they would get to play the slumping Braves - with home field advantage. I think I know which option I'd prefer. Second, have you seen the Brewers' road record lately? 38-40. If they sweep the Cubbies at Wrigley, they will have broken .500 away from Miller Park, which would be completely insane. And then their last six games are at home. Milwaukee holds a half-game lead on the Phils for the best home record in baseball and I'd like to think that's an honor the Brewers would like to hold. So there you have it. The Brewers are 90-63, would have to completely tank to not surpass my prediction of a 91-71 record (a prediction I'm sure all of you found ignorant), and are set to claim their first title in 29 years. Cool. Pretty much all that's left is to figure out who will be on that postseason roster. Taylor Green over Josh Wilson? I think so.

Coming up...

Milwaukee (90-63): @ Cubs (MON-WED), vs Marlins (FRI-SUN)
Green Bay (2-0): @ Bears (1-1) SUN, 3:15
Wisconsin (3-0): vs South Dakota State

Let the good times roll.

Winning Over Here, Losing Over There

Good evening, everyone. I'd like to mention a few things before we get started. First of all, I hope all you guys took the time to remember what happened 10 years ago yesterday. There were many touching shows dedicated to the 9/11 attacks and I thought the sports world did a great job honoring the ones we lost on that fateful day - I especially thought what they did at every NFL game where the players from both sides stepped out to hold the enormous American flag was an awesome tribute. Second, I know I'm going to be pretty late with my game reviews of the Packers and Badgers, but like I said before, working two jobs and starting up school again is gonna be a doozy and I'll try my best to keep this thing active. Which brings me to my next point...if anyone would be interested in writing a guest post here and there so that I don't leave so much time in between posts, they would be more than welcome. Whether anyone ACTUALLY wants to do that is another question because writing is pretty boring, but the offer is on the table.

So let's start with what took place Thursday night at the hallowed grounds of Lambeau Field. No, I'm not talking about the Kid Rock concert...the Green Bay Packers kicked off their season by welcoming the New Orleans Saints to town and these two teams seem to be similar in several different ways. The most obvious comparison comes at quarterback and if Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers aren't currently top four quarterbacks in the NFL, then I've lost all faith in humanity. Both Brees and A-Rodg tore apart the opposing secondaries and once the first quarter was all said and done, it was apparent that whoever bet the over on the over/under points number was going to be raking in some cash. It was about as good of a start as Packer fans could've hoped for...the Packers won the toss and elected to receive...a no brainer and possibly the biggest reason Green Bay prevailed, Rodgers hit Jennings for six after a five minute drive, an ensuing fumble by the Saints was recovered by Tramon "Man" Williams (miraculously the only turnover of the game - was that the difference?) and then another quick score on a pass to my boy Jordy Nelson. After the first quarter, the Pack had jumped out to a 21-7 lead thanks to a no-huddle offense being run to near perfection by Rodgers. I felt that even though there were a few false start penalties, the guys up front really dominated and gave A-Rodg enough time to do what he wanted - the no-huddle was without question hindering the Saints defense, who couldn't put pressure on Rodgers.

There's no denying that the Packers' offense was slowed down for the remainder of the game and I think there were a few reasons behind this: the Saints defensive coordinator figured out a new scheme to keep Green Bay's offense at bay, sure, but I also thought Mike McCarthy lifted his foot off the gas pedal for some reason. It just seemed odd that the offense could go from completely unstoppable to being held in check for the last three quarters. Whatever the reason for this, Brees took advantage and used his ridiculous accuracy to get the Saints back in the game faster than I would've preferred. Special teams for both squads were about as up-and-down as they could possibly be, with Darren Sproles taking a punt to the house for the Saints and rookie sensation Randall Cobb returning a kickoff from Appleton all the way to the end zone - 108 yards in all - to inject new life into the Packers and jump ahead by 15. Funny thing about Cobb...he ran the wrong route on his touchdown reception in the first quarter and then by no means should have taken that kick out of his own end zone, but I think coach McCarthy will begrudgingly accept the results.

Then there was the frantic finale to the NFL's opening game. With the Packers up 42-27 and Green Bay unable to convert a third down with just under six minutes left, they were forced to punt and watch Brees lead a hurry-up offense down the field in just over three minutes to make it an eight point game. During this drive, Williams took a helmet to the shoulder from his own teammate and it appeared as though he may have separated his shoulder (we now know it was just a shoulder bruise). Even though the Saints failed to recover the onside kick, they still had a timeout and the two-minute warning on their side. Fast forward to a punt after some questionable play calling, a crazy-fast drive down the field and a questionable (bull s***) pass interference call on A.J. Hawk, and the Saints had it at the GB one-yard line with barely any time left on the clock. At this point, I was wondering how the Packers would manage to stop the two-point conversion, but then the Saints made their second questionable play call of the game when faced with a yard to go and got stuffed on a run up the middle. Ball game...whew...and a classic one at that.

So I liked what I saw in the passing game and the run game was actually somewhat respectable thanks to the success Green Bay had through the air. Obviously, the performance of the defense left something to be desired and it was especially concerning that whenever the Saints scored, they did it very quickly. Like I mentioned before, I didn't like how it seemed that the offense slowed things down and didn't keep up with the no-huddle offense after how successful it was early on. The biggest play call I had a gripe with was when McCarthy predictably called a run on second down of the Packers' final possession and then risked stopping the clock on the third down with a dump off (for a loss) to John Kuhn. I'm certain that for as long as I live, I'll question what in God's name some coaches are thinking when they call a certain play. Those are my biggest concern moving forward into week two's match-up with the Carolina Panthers, but for now I'll relish in the 42-34 victory for the Super Bowl Champs.

The Wisconsin Badgers continued their sheer dominance of college football by shutting out an Oregon State team that arguably might not win a game this season. Once again, Russell Wilson and Montee Ball had enormous performances while Nick Toon looked as sharp as ever and tight end Jacob Pedersen scored twice in a 35-0 route of the Beavers. The Badgers are now up to seventh and eighth in the two major polls, Wilson and Ball should both be legitimately considered for the Heisman trophy up to this point...for whatever that's worth...and Wisky still hasn't played anybody that'll reach a bowl game this season. That'll change next week when they go up against former defensive coordinator Dave Doeren and a dangerous Northern Illinois team down in Soldier Field. Could prove to be a bit of a test for the Badgers, but if they can keep playing the way they have been playing, Wisconsin should come back to Madison with a 3-0 record. That's all from me about preseason college football.

In case you forgot, the Milwaukee Brewers still have a season going on and are somehow managing to cling onto a division lead. The reason I say "somehow" is because they have literally been doing everything in their power to blow a lead that was at one point 11.5 games. That lead is now down to six, but the magic number has also gone down...which is a good thing. It's now at 10 and the Crew has for the most part cleared the difficult part of their September schedule, so my hope is that it'll be smooth sailing from here. Since I last posted, the Brewers lost five games in a row to two of the more elite National League teams (Cardinals and Phillies), including the game I attended Friday night in order to get a Tony Plush rally towel. Not only did Nyjer not respond very well to 30,000 towels being waved (went 0-4), but the Brewers played the most uninspired game I've personally attended this season. Not much of a surprise, really...it's September. The last four times the Brewers have been in playoff contention, including this season, they appear to have lost all will to live. Not sure what it is, but things are getting a little dicey and even though I remain confident that the Brewers will be playing in October, their play against top teams recently, and this season in general, should be cause for concern. If only everyone had the swagger and attributes that Taylor Green brings to the table...

Coming up...

Milwaukee (86-62): vs Rockies (TUE-WED), @ Reds (FRI-SUN)
Green Bay (1-0): SUN @ Carolina (0-1)
Wisconsin (2-0): SAT vs Northern Illinois (Soldier Field)

The Cardinals still have to travel to Philly for a 4-game series and are currently in Pittsburgh for a three-gamer. I would be pleased to see the Brewers' magic number down to that 4-5 range by the end of the week so I don't have to rely on the Packers to calm my worries. Besides, I can't remember the last time watching a Packer game was a calming experience.