Iowa... The Land of Mullets and Hawkeye Football

        On Thursday night, I did something I’ve never done before.   I cut a mullet.  No, not on myself.  It was my friend Ryan.  He had decided that he wanted a mullet in honor of our road trip to Iowa City and somehow I became the one holding the clippers. 

         I did… okay.  There was one minor slip-up on his sideburn but other than that, it turned out looking pretty good.  I mean, as good as a mullet can look.  It’s funny because he didn’t even stand out in Iowa.  No one—except the Minnesota fans—even commented on his hair.  I guess that’s just how it is in Iowa—mullets and Hawkeye football.

         There was a moment during the drive down Friday night when I thought, maybe the Gophers could pull this off.  Brewster hadn’t produced a big win yet and Iowa had just lost to Northwestern and Ohio State.  There was a chance.  Granted, it was a very slim chance but if Adam Weber could pull it together we may be able to do something offensively.  Ha.

         Obviously, by now you know we got shut out.  In fact, the only good thing we did the entire game was block a field goal.  It was still cool to get inside of Kinnick Stadium, the third Big Ten stadium I’ve been to.  Somehow my best friend and I ended up with sweet seats—just five rows up from the 20-yard line—right in the midst of all of the Gopher fans.  And even though the game itself was awful, we still had a great time.

         It looks like next year I’ll be able to hit up Purdue, Michigan State, and Illinois—three more stadiums to cross of the my list.  That just leaves Ohio State, Northwestern, Penn State, and Indiana—meaning I will have visited all of the Big Ten stadiums by the end of the 2012 season.  Yikes. 

        I added in a few photos from the trips… Halfsies—two Gopher fans and two Iowa fans—up with the sun for some Saturday football… Lil Nigel II and his warning sign…  Mr. Ryan Kelly and the infamous mullet.  Some of us also made the local news... KCRG Iowa Football Video  Yes, that is me talking a mean game to some Iowa fans.  My mom must be so proud.

As long as it isn't the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl...

            The Gophers are two games away from being bowl eligible.  I was pretty optimistic at the beginning of the season that we would make one of the seven spots offered to the Big Ten.  Maybe it was the high I got from watching the Gophers play in our new stadium.  Maybe it was the potential we all saw in Adam Weber and super hero Eric Decker.  Maybe it was pure school spirit.  Whatever it was, it started to dwindle today when I started thinking about bowl season and where the Gophers stood.  Two games doesn’t seem like a lot, I get that.  But the rest of our schedule doesn’t leave much room for mistakes.

Our next two games—both on the road at Penn State and Ohio State—are going to define our season.  With both teams 5-1 at the midway point, I’m not going to hold my breath or pray for a miracle.  I get it, I should be more optimistic but it’s Penn State and Ohio State!  We have only played Penn State ten times—the last an overtime win for the Nittany Lions in 2006.  And we did beat the Buckeyes in 2000.  But they are consistently pretty damn good at football and seem to be considered two of the top teams in the Big Ten.  Penn State did surf smoothly through their first half of the season with wins against Akron, Temple, and Eastern Illinois--and even Coach Joe has addressed the fact that this is their first chance to really define themselves as a football team.  So maybe there is hope?! 

  Thankfully, there’s a chance we could pick up a win against Michigan State on Halloween—the Spartans are also 2-1 in the Big Ten, probably still reeling from Central Michigan’s major upset on Sept. 12^th.  It really could be anyone’s game.  So hypothetically speaking, if the Gophers can pull off a win against Michigan State, we’d have a record of 5-4 with three games left to play.  Illinois, South Dakota State and the dreaded Iowa. 

Who hates Iowa?  This girl.  Especially after the blow-out at the Dome last year (I promise that is the only time I will mention that).  One thing I’m confident about is the Gophers chances against Illinois.  (I’m not even going to address SDSU because if we don’t beat them, I think TCF Bank Stadium will be torn apart.)  And let’s be honest—if the Gophers score against the Hawkeyes in Iowa City, we will all be happy.  Therefore, I’m thinking—okay, I’m predicting—the Gophers end the season either 7-5 or 6-6, depending on what happens when Michigan State comes to town.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see the Gophers take as many wins as they can.  I’m just being practical.  After going just 1-11 in 2007, I’ve become very frugal with my optimism when it comes to Minnesota football.  So on Saturday—when the Gophs take on #14 Penn State—think of me watching the game with my hands half covering my eyes.  And if the guys decide to surprise us all, I will have no problem eating my words.   

First Gopher Game at the TCF Bank Stadium

Minnesota vs. Air Force

September 12th, 2009

20-13 W