Football, Hunting, NCAA, Sports

No Bats in the Shack

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Made it out today. Yesterday it was pretty warm outside, but today it was freezing. It even snowed a little. I know enough about bats to know they don’t mess around when it’s cold. They huddle together for warmth and stay that way until temperatures rise again. Any bat not in the huddle is either dead or dying.

So, I wasn’t too worried about being in the shack today. I admit that I was a little jumpy, but not terribly. Got in a few hours of hunting, but didn’t see any deer. Pretty much just read. Been getting in a lot of reading while sitting in the shack this year.

I packed it up when it was getting dark and made it back to the house in time to catch the last quarter of the Michigan-Indiana game. That was a hell of a snowstorm you guys in Ann Arbor had. People were making snow angels on the field. At times the snow was falling so hard, we could barely see the game.

Michigan won. The final score was 20-10.

Football, NCAA, Sports

No Blue

Well, damn. It just happened. Iowa wrecked Michigan’s perfect season. By one point.

The Wolverines were ahead. The score was Michigan 13- Iowa 11. But the Wolverines’ defense failed to hold the Hawkeyes back as the last seconds were running out.

The Hawkeyes got themselves within field goal range with three seconds left on the clock.

I prayed that Iowa’s kicker would miss the mark or one of our guys would miraculously leap and block the ball as it flew overhead.

But when has God ever listened to me?

Football, NCAA, Sports

Blue Peppers

Michigan beat Michigan State. It had been a few years since the Wolverines last won the Paul Bunyan Trophy. The final score was 32-23. Michigan had a bigger lead than that, but State pushed harder in the 4th Quarter.

Jabrill Peppers made some heroic plays. Near the end, when State was getting awfully close to the end zone, Peppers nailed the quarterback on the 4th down and the ball was turned over to Michigan.

State did get another touchdown, with one second left on the clock. After that, instead of kicking for one more point, State was going to try for two points.

But the quarterback dropped the ball and Peppers snatched it up. He ran the whole length of the field to Michigan’s end zone and those two points went to the Wolverines instead.

Football, High School, Hockey, NHL, Sports

Woodland Christian at California School for the Deaf

While scrolling the guide for the Detroit Red Wings, I came across one  of those high school football games that ESPN sometimes covers. This one was Woodland Christian at California School for the Deaf.

Having gone to a deaf school myself, this was a game I wanted to watch. I flipped back and forth between the Red Wings and the high school football game. But the football game held most of my attention.

There was a lot of signing on the field and not just from the refs. CSD proved to be a very tough team, with good offense and defense. The final score was California School for the Deaf: 43 – Woodland Christian: 0.

After the football game, the Red Wings had a long shootout with the Blues. Zetterberg is the hero tonight, he broke the 1-1 tie.

Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey, MLB, NBA, NCAA, NFL, NHL, Sports

In Sports: I’ll just make a big stew tonight

Okay, just watched the Red Wings win another one. Good game. They’ve really been slicing the ice. Tonight’s win was their fifth win in a row and that makes their season 5-2 so far. Lookin’ good.

The Lions are picking up their game. They won their last three games. I admit that things were pretty tense in those games, but they won them. Their season is 4-3 now and looking hopeful.

Now the Michigan Wolverines, baby. Jim Harbaugh and the team are making me very happy. The Wolverines are undefeated so far, 7-0, and several of their wins were big wins.

The Michigan-Michigan State game is Saturday. I expect the Wolverines will beat the Spartans this years.

Go Blue!

The Detroit Pistons start their regular season tomorrow at 7:30 PM. I’m looking forward to it. Their preseason was so-so, they won three and lost three. But preseasons are really just warm ups and don’t mean much. So, who knows what will happen in the regular season. I expect it to be fun.

I’m rooting for the Cubs in the World Series. I saw them win the NLCS on Saturday night. It had been a very, very long time since they last did that. Long term curses like that sure remind you how old Major League Baseball is. Billy Goat’s curse lasted longer than Babe Ruth’s.

The Cub’s gotta win the World Series. If they win, all will be right in the world.

Football, NFL, Sports

The Lions Stayed Toe-to-toe with the Rams

I really enjoyed today’s game. For every touchdown one team got, the other team soon got a touchdown of their own. The score was level until the end.

Near the end, the Lions got the ball within a yard of a first down. They were going to try to get the ball over the first down line and continue to push for a touchdown. But a timeout was called and Prater went in to kick a field goal.

I admit, I thought that would be a bad move. Though Prater made the field goal, there was a minute and a half left on the clock, enough time for the Rams to get another touchdown. It looked like that just might happen, but then Bush intercepted Keenum’s pass to Kendricks.

Lions 31 – Rams 28.

Whadda game!

Football, High School, Political, Sports

Lapeer Lightning Sings the National Anthem

Last week, the Lapeer High School freshman football team were at an away game in Flint Township. They had lined up for the National Anthem and when they were informed the Anthem wouldn’t play, they took it onto themselves to sing it.

I think that is awesome. I’m seriously impressed. I can’t believe no one has produced a video of this yet. There’s got to be a video. There’s got to be several videos. I very much want to see this on video.

Anyway, I’ve seen some articles that are making this about politics. This really had nothing to do with Colin Kaepernick and his decision not to stand during the National Anthem. Nor was it a stand against liberals and it wasn’t an attempt to boost conservative pride.

Many high schools don’t play the National Anthem before freshman games, because the freshman game is not the top event of the day. I personally don’t agree with the notion that the National Anthem should only be played before the top event. I see no reason why it can’t be played before freshman games.

But that’s how it’s done at many schools. However, apparently, it’s not done that way at Lapeer High School. Our freshman team believed the National Anthem should play. When it didn’t, they thought something was wrong with the sound system and they made sure the National Anthem was heard before the game started.

So, it wasn’t about politics. It was just good ole boys making their way the only way they knew how.

It was awesome. I’m proud that this is my town’s high school we’re talking about.

Now where’s the damn video?

Football, NCAA, Sports

Michigan Sinks Hawaii

The Michigan Wolverines went all Blue on Hawaii’s Rainbow Warriors. Many long rushes and passes gave Michigan a 63-3 victory for the first game of the new season.

Next week Michigan plays UCF. Maybe that’ll be a tougher game, maybe not. I’d sure like to see Michigan win all and lose none this season.

Welp, a good first week.

Go Blue!

Football, NFL, Sports

Hi, my name is Rob and I’m addicted to sports

Since getting cable TV on Monday, my sport watching addiction has come back with vengeance. I need a game a day to keep the doctor away. In the last couple years, I’d watch games on ESPN3.com or at my mom and dad’s house. But mostly all I could get was the Lions. The Tigers and the Wolverines, and even the Red Wings and Pistons, were a rare find on mom and dad’s TV, as well as ESPN3.com. Often I’d just watch different teams, but it’s always better to watch my own.

I know it’s an addiction when I realize none of my teams are playing today and I start to go cold turkey. But wait, that’s not quite right. The NFL preseason started a few weeks ago and isn’t today Thursday?

I went to the official Detroit Lions website and checked their schedule. Thank the Heavens, there is a game on today. It’s just a preseason game, but it’s a game, a game that at least helps us predict the outcome of the regular season… or so we tell ourselves.

What a game it was. Several players made impressive plays. The Lions successfully kept the Bills out of the End Zone. The final score is, Lions 31 and Bills 0.

That was the last game of the preseason. The regular season starts September 11, when the Lions face the Colts. I’ll probably watch that at my mom and dad’s house. It’s what we’ve been doing for the last several years.

So, out of the four preseason games, the Lions won two and lost two. If the preseason could accurately predict the regular season, by the preseason results, I guess that would mean the Lions will win half their regular games and lose the other half.

But in reality, regardless of how the preseason went, the regular season is always iffy. The Lions might fail miserably or this might be the year they break the terrible curse. I say that every year, so we’ll just have to see.

I was pleased to see that the Lions have Jake Rudock. He was Michigan’s starting quarterback last year. I thought he did very well with the Wolverines and he seems to be doing well with the Lions.

Matthew Stafford is still with the Lions too, so I’m not sure who the starting quarterback will be. But maybe they’ll both get playing time during the regular season.

NFL

Goodbye Megatron

Well, wow. Wasn’t expecting this. Calvin Johnson is retiring from NFL. Johnson, man, he ruled. Season after season, I watched the Lions, missing very few games. Johnson was one of the players who gave us hope for a winning season. I think Johnson was the best thing to happen to the Lions since Barry Sanders.

But I understand why Johnson is retiring. He’d gotten pretty banged up in the course of his career and he’d dealt with several injuries in his last few seasons. Thirty years old seems pretty young to be retiring, but not when you’ve spent years getting smashed into by really big guys .

We’ll miss you, Calvin. Good luck in whatever you do next.