Ok, I’ll be the first to admit that the Texans have a good team. But over the past few weeks the Colts have defeated the Steelers and the Buccaneers, both who are playoff bound. And they came close this time.
They were trailing 23-17 and had 4’th and 1 at the Texans 15; they had driven it from the 25. The Texans had scored a touchdown but missed the PAT to leave the door open.
So 4’th and 1: Their star running back had amassed 188 yards of rushing up to then. So, they give the ball to him, right? Right?
Tyler Goodson man… you gotta catch that. Gardner Minshew put that ball right there.
Texans get the ball back from the Colts with just 1 minute remaining 👀
Alas, we were treated to a nice drone show outside of the stadium though:
The game started ok; the Colts drove the opening kickoff to get a field goal and lead 3-0. That lasted until the Texans first play from scrimmage; a beautiful 75 yard bomb.
The teams settled down a bit but in the second quarter, another drive lead to a 14-3 lead, but the Colts hit a loooong field goal to go into the half trailing 14-6.
In the 3’rd, the Colts running back broke a beautiful long run and it was followed by a 2 point conversion to tie the game! The Colts “doinked” a long field goal and the Texans drove in close enough to make theirs, and so it was 17-14 Texans going into the 4’th.
The Colts made a shorter field goal to tie it.
At this stage, I thought that the Colts had momentum, but a long Texans drive put them up 23-17, but a missed extra point left the door open for the Colts. But it was not to be.
Socially: Barbara and “The Boys” went with me…and aside from the result, enjoyed the game. Lucas was bedlam.
Dec 30: pull ups, high incline presses (5 x 94, 3 sets of 5 x 114) goblet squats (60), slow 4 mile walk.
Dec 31: 2 miles in the parking lot
Jan 1: 7.05 in 1:38:11 on the Riverfront
Today: pull ups (mostly sets of 5; one sloppy set of 10 with a penalty set of 3), 40 second hold, high incline: 5 x 94, 5 x 105, 5 x 115, miss 130, make 130, light goblet squats (finally below parallel), 4 sets of 5 x 134 on the bench.
Later: 3.36 miles in 49:46 (Tower Park over the Knoxville Bridge to Northmore and back. Chilly but wore no sweatshirt.
And yes, there was a trip to Indianapolis to watch the Colts knock off the Raiders 23-20.
The Colts lead 14-3 at the half; dominated the first half. They then turned to ball control and lead 17-10 going into the 4’th. Running set up a field goal to put it 20-10; the Raiders countered with a drive to make it 20-13 and then the Colts added another field goal to go up 23-13 late.
The Raiders mounted a last second drive to cut it t0 23-20 (spectacular catch in the end zone) but there were only 42 seconds left and the Colts recovered the onside kick.
Saturday (23 December) Deadlifts: 10 x 110, 10 x 154 deficit, 10 x 190, 10 x 225 low, then 1 x 300 (felt bad), 10 x 280 8 inch. Then a 4.35 mile walk 14:30 pace.
Saturday: adventure in Chicago. Drive to Chicago; have my GPS freeze so I parked at the Wells Street lot and trudged .7 miles to the hotel (after a misfire; was next door). Checked in early. Then 5.9 miles on the Lakeshore which included a trip back to the lot to get the rest of my stuff and then back to the hotel. Then 1 mile to the game and 1 plus miles back.
So, in all, it was 8-9 miles for the day. That would have been impossible 2 years ago.
Last night: 4 pm after driving, family lunch: 17:14 pace for 5K of very wet walking.
Today: leisurely weights and a 4 mile walk (4.1 in 56:20; Cornstalk course plus an extra)
The weights: pull ups: 10, 10, 6 sets of 5 (last 4 were chin ups)
downstairs: bench: 5 x 134, 1 x 154, 1 x 165, 1 x 170, 1 x 154, 5 x 150, 5 x 150, 5 x 150 (no bounce in any set)
high incline: 7 x 105, 5 x 110, 5 x 110, 4 x 115 (out of gas)
3 sets of curls.
The walk: much better than yesterday.
Now about the game: I got there in plenty of time and enjoyed a 50 yard line, front row Media Deck seat. But I had to show my ticket: at the gate, at the Media Deck section and again to GET to my seat. You don’t have to show quite so much in the Media Deck corner sections. But man, what a seat.
And the game: the Bears offense started well; it was 21-0 in the second quarter. The Cardinals eventually closed it to 24-16 in the 4’th (went for 2?) and the Bears got an insurance field goal late (after a 4’th down stop) to win 27-16. J Fields had quite the game; close to 100 yards rushing and connecting with his tight end (who got hurt on his last long reception) and the Bears ran well.
Oddly: everyone on my right left early in the 4’th quarter.
Bug: yeah, I still have it; burning nose, stuffy head, though I did not wake up coughing last night. The cough is not gone but it is better.
Workout: 50 reps pull ups: 20 singles, 4 sets of 5, 10 singles, 30 second hold (timer at 35 seconds)
bench: 7 x 134, 7 x 134, 5 x 145, 5 x 145, all with a pause at the bottom.
3 sets of 10 shrugs
3 sets of 5 x 110 high incline 3 sets of curls.
2 mile walk (16:10 pace) and of course, PT. That was enough for Monday. Weight: 186.5
Yesterday:
I counted this as 3: to and from the stadium, easy pace, with Harry.
The game:
Well, the Bears won 28-13, out scoring the Lions 18-0 in the second half.
Basically the Bears owned the first quarter going up 10-0. The Lions owned the second (behind some good running) 13-0. But at early 2n’d half Bears drive tied at at 13, then the Bears put them away with 2 touchdowns (missed PAT, missed a 2 point attempt) and a field goal.
The Lions took a lot of 4’th down risks and came up empty; the Bears defense was magnificent.
The quarterback was spectacular. More than once, I thought he was sacked. But he wasn’t.
I did make a mistake as to where I sat: there were a lot of young “jack in the boxes” who stood at the first hint of excitement. And that matters because I am slower to stand (comes with age) and so I should probably choose the higher up seats or the more expensive club seats. I’d see the player break open..then stand to see the rest but miss a bit. But the monitors were close by…so it worked out and I enjoyed the experience.
So unless the weather is dreadful, my best bet is probably the first few rows of 300 or 400 or United Club.
I started my day with PT and a short walk (West Peoria 3.14 course in 40:18 or 12:50 mpm). Then I picked up Tracy and it was off to the Penn State game.
The tone was more or less set on the opening drive which lead to a missed field goal by the Illini. The Penn State offense was less than impressive, but an early fumble and TWO interceptions lead to Penn State taking a 13-0 lead. On the first of these drives, Penn State had a first and goal at the 2 and got stuffed.
A blocked field goal (52 yd) set up an Illini TD drive (one determined run) but then a late exchange of punts lead to a Penn State field goal as time expired. 16-7 and it could have been a lot worse.
An early drive in the 3’rd quarter was thwarted by yet another interception. Then came a drive punctuated by an option pass for a 23-7 lead…then a 4’th interception (5’th turn over) which lead to a touchdown run and 30-7 lead.
Penn State then got the ball back and turned it over to their second team quarterback and played a lot of guys on defense as well, and the Illini second team quarterback (with 3’rd running back) got a consolation touchdown with just over 4 minutes to go to cut it to 30-13. (2 point conversion failed)
Total yards: 383 to 354 Penn State, but much of the gap was closed in the 4’th, and those turnovers!
Socially: we got there early so we checked out aspects of the stadium.
Saturday: Illinois hosted Northwestern. NW came in with a 6-5 record and Illinois was 5-6 and needed a win to make a bowl. B and Jacob sat in club seats; I sat in my regular seat.
The game started off with an exchange of punts, followed by a Northwestern interception off a tipped pass, putting the Cats at the Illini 26. They marched it in with no problem.
The Illini marched it down with a nice drive, but fumbled the shotgun snap on 3’rd and 1 and had to settle for a field goal. 7-3.
No problem for Northwestern; they took over, kept it until the second quarter and marched it 73 yards for a touchdown: 14-3 early in the second.
Now the Illini got a great return to their own 43 and marched it 57 yards for a touchdown to cut it to 14-10; the game began to take on an Indiana game vibe.
The Cats were held and made a short punt; the Illini drove it deep again and kicked a field goal to cut it to 14-13 with 2:20 to play.
Northwestern got aggressive. With 1:54 to go, a pass was picked off at the NW 45 and returned for a touchdown! So..it was 20-14 Illini.
So..Northwestern got the ball with 1:09 and promptly marched 75 yards for a touchdown. But that had some controversy: the final play was a short run from the 3 and the ball carrier fumbled before crossing the goal line. The ball was loose and underneath all of the bodies it was ruled that a Northwestern guy recovered the ball. It was impossible to tell from the replay.
So, it was a wild half: 21-20 Cats.
Second half: Northwestern gets the ball; this time they drive it 89 yards to lead 28-20; the Illini defense was reeling. But the Illini offense got another drive..which ended with…another field goal. It was now 28-23 with about 6 minutes left in the 3’rd.
Northwestern drove it back but ended up missing a field goal (short from 45).
So, just after the start of the 4’th, the Illini finish their drive with a sweet option pass from their “quarterback turned wide receiver” and now lead 31-28 after the 2 point coversion.
But we were just getting started.
The Illini forced a punt. The Illini muffed said punt and Northwestern recovered at the 18. 4 plays later, Northwestern took the lead back 35-31 scoring on a quarterback scramble.
Then on the next kick off…the Illinois guy gets tackled; the ball pops up in the air, and a Northwestern guy caught it and ran it in.
But..we are not getting revved up. The Illini hit a short pass and Washington, the receiver slipped a tackler and ran down to the Northwestern 3 yard line. A penalty gave the Illini 4 downs from the 2 and they needed ALL of them to cut it to 42-37 (missed the 2 point conversion) with 7:15 to go in this wild game.
Northwestern ..you guessed it, started a drive but the Illini intercepted it inside the 10 yard line. Just over 5 minutes remain.
But…Illinois pass is tipped and intercepted again, at the 30.
The Cats get stopped but eat up 2 minutes and (barely) make a field goal; now it is 45-37 with just under 3 minutes.
The Illini get the ball back but with just under 3 minutes to go, but fail on 4’th and 3 with 2:21. The quarterback got sacked.
The Illini still have time outs.
The Cats can’t move and elect a pooch punt with 55 seconds to go.
Then…you guessed it..80 yard touchdown pass on a play very similar to the 75 yarder! But the Cats stop the 2 point conversion, and cover the onside kick.
This is a long highlight reel, but..well, there were a lot of highlights.
This one ended 27-20. Once again, I sat away from the crown in section 209; great view, but this was one of those poorly designed “only one exit” rows.
Tampa struck first with a field goal to go up 3-0 but the Colts got the next 3 scores to go up 17-3. A quick Tampa drive got it to 17-10 and then the Colts ..for some reason, burned a lot of clock and settled for a 58 yard attempt which doinked.
The Colts used strong running to move 75 yards for the clinching touchdown, though the Bucs did respond with a field goal with 4:20 to go to cut it to 27-20, which was the final score.
Ok, getting to the game was a disaster …tried the interstate and was in line for about 45 minutes…and then inside..forgot that the cash machine was gone. Live and learn.
This was my third trip to Kinnick Stadium. The first was in 1993: a Miami Hurricane victor over Iowa. A friend was dating someone who had a son on the team (redshirting). The second was that infamous 55-24 blowout of Ohio State in 2017. Unforgettable trip; I might “encore post” that one.
And last Saturday: It was an easy trip there; left at 9:40 and arrived just after noon. I panicked a bit as the lot that I had planned to park in was full of tailgaters ..no spots at all. I did find a garage that was a pleasant 1 mile walk away from the stadium though. I’ll make a note of it.
The day: slightly chilly but downright warm for November in Iowa. I didn’t wear everything.
And the atmosphere: outstanding. Iowans take their football seriously! Packed stadium; fans cheering their team and booing the referees (and a few boos of offensive calls). But as to the game: I felt like crying afterward.
The Illini fought hard; took them to the limit. And late in the 4’th, the Illini had a 13-9 lead and had stopped Iowa’s offense all day…but that changed for two key drives.
How to sum it up.
Early, Iowa had a short drive, punted then sacked the Illinois QB in the end zone for a safety. Then it appeared that Iowa might take control; they had a decent drive that stalled and they missed a field goal.
Illinois made theirs (50+ yards) and lead 3-2 going into the second quarter.
Iowa responded with a long, time consuming drive that finished in the 2n’d quarter to lead 9-3. But the Illini responded with a long drive (key play: one longish run, and a nice pass to the tight end over the middle) to take a 10-9 lead.
After that..the Illini appeared to get the better of the action. But the Illini missed a long field goal..drove in close and at the beginning of the 4’th, on 4’th and 2 near the Iowa 10, settled for a field goal. I approved of the move as the Illini defense was in complete control. It was 13-9 and I thought that the Illini were going to win.
Then came their least ditch drive with 6:51. A good punt return set Iowa up near mid field, and two PI penalties (probably good calls, but the Illini didn’t get such benefit of the doubt) moved the ball to the 30. Then came “the run”.
Still, the Illini got the ball back with 4:40 to play. They ended up with 4’th and 2 at their own 33 with 2 time outs and they lined up in punt formation. Then the coach called a time out…then they went for it..pass batted down.
Now the Illini had one time out, and the Hawkeyes came up with a big run to get a first down to ice the game.
Sigh…
The game stats were about as even as the game was.
I had a front row seat in Section 332; I was kind of up there but loved the view of the game.
Other games: I was also disappointed in that the Illinois State Redbirds lost their game to North Dakota with 27 second left; ND makes the playoffs and the Redbirds don’t. They also lost a last second game to Youngstown State: so close but not yet there.
Navy beat a lousy East Carolina team 10-0 and now as won 5 games, albeit against dreadfully bad opposition.
Well, I saw a Big Ten football game, a clash between two solid mid major men’s basketball teams, and clash between two (bad) women’s basketball teams. The latter ended 65-62 where the losing team (Central Michigan) had two chances to tie or take the lead at the end. And the other two games went to overtime!
The men’s game was between Bradley and Utah State was a solid, solid game between well coached teams. It was close throughout and ended tied at regulation at 62. Both teams had a chance to win in regulation.
Bradley won 72-66.
Now to the football game:
It started out slowly; it had the makings of a punt fest. But then Illinois got the offense cranking.
The Illini had to settle for a field goal on this drive. Then the defense forced another punt (there were not many) but fumbled it away; Indiana then converted to a touchdown and lead 7-3.
Back came the Illini for a very quick touchdown drive; the player who fumbled the punt caught a medium pass and converted it to a 75 yard gain and the offense punched it in. But the extra point was missed and it was 9-7.
Things were just getting started. Indiana drove it in the second half; easily; 14-9. The Illini responded with a drive of their own but had to settle for 3 and it was now 14-12. Indiana another drive (passing and running at will): 21-12. Then the quarterback made his only bad play of the day: interception while trying to throw the ball away. EASY 52 yard drive and it was 27-12 Hoosiers.
But the Illini got it right back; Indiana had now defense either and it was 27-19. Then the Illini defense got a stop; got the ball back and ran a 2 minute drill to pull within 27-26 just before the half ended!
Second half: the Illini appeared to control the 3’rd quarter, stopping one drive on a fumble, forcing a punt and then taking a 33-27 lead.
4’th quarter: the Illini converted an interception to a touchdown to take a 39-27 lead (failed on 2 point conversion).
But the Hoosier offense woke up again and drove for another touchdown: 39-34. The Illini had a chance to put the game away but had to settle for a field goal and a 42-34 lead.
One last Indiana drive was stopped on downs at the Illini 37 with 2:58 to play.
But the Hoosier defense got a stop and forced a punt and got the ball at their own 15 with 1:37 to play and no time outs.
No problem: 85 yard drive for a touchdown, and 2 point conversion in left corner of the endzone. 28 seconds were left.
But in the first overtime period, Indiana ran it three straight times and kicked to take the lead. But the Illini scored a touchdown on the right side to win.
The Illini had 662 yards of offense and 507 passing yards; the Hoosiers had 451 total yards, but benefited from some short fields.
Yes, I remembered to work out too.
Saturday: so so 4 mile walk (gave blood on Friday)
Today: walked 10K in 1:29:26 (4:30 slower than on Thursday, before the blood donation) and then did 4 light sets of deadlifts: 10 x 134 4 inch, 10 x 184, 10 x 226 4 inch, 10 x 260 8 inch (no difficulties at all)
I had a glorious day watching football on TV: I had ESPN+ and cable going. Watched ND get beat by Clemson 31-23; midway I had the Navy game on and Navy’s defense got torched in a 32-18 loss to a bad Temple team; picked up the end of the Illinois State come from behind 36-35 win at Missouri State: rallied from 28-20 down and 35-28 down and, after getting to 35-34 with less than 30 seconds to go, went for 2 and got it.
Then there was this:
4’th and 11; new back up quarterback comes in cold. Illinois at their own 12. Make the first down…then march right down:
ILLINOIS TAKES THE LEAD WITH LESS THAN A MINUTE TO GO. 😱
Here's the two-point conversion call that officials overturned to say the Illinois State receiver had possession for the game-winning score at Missouri State. pic.twitter.com/rfrFqZPIn2
The “miracle drive” by the Illini (remember: the back up quarterback came in cold with a 4’th and 11 at the 15)
Relive the final drive from Illinois’ 27-26 win over Minnesota.
The fourth generation Illini following his great grandfather, grandfather, & uncle who were all #Illini football players, John Paddock leads Illinois down the field, with the help of Isaiah Williams, for the win. pic.twitter.com/jLkHjUvjYm
But I got a 10k plus (really: 6.3 miles?) on a perfect day for walking. A few more cars in Bradley Park than I’d like but I should have started earlier.
October 6-7: Illinois vs Nebraska on Friday, South Dakota State at Illinois State on Sunday October 14: Indiana State at Illinois State.
October 21: Wisconsin at Illinois
October 28: Northern Iowa at Illinois.
Spoiled rotten, I tell you.
And yesterday’s game: this featured UNI at no. 23 and the Redbirds facing off for a potential shot at the playoffs. And while UNI got leads of 21-7 and 24-14 (4’th quarter), the Redbirds came within 3 with 27 seconds to go in the game, and were inches from getting an onside kick.
I had row 3 tickets to the game, but I moved to row 34 to get a better view of the action.
The game started with ISU getting the ball and moving it well..but they fumbled at the UNI 45.
After an exchange of punts, UNI had a long pass end when the receiver fumbled the ball in the open field with no one around him. ISU recovered and then drove it in to cut the lead to 21-14, just before the end of the half.
which the Redbirds did nothing with. Then UNI missed a field goal. Then ISU was held on downs. Eventually, in the 4’th, UNI burned up 8 minutes of clock and kicked a field goal to lead 24-14 with 2:48 to go.
Life of an old goat 