It's late, I am waiting for food to be ready for tailgating this weekend...in other words, time to answer my own questions for this week's IBG. Before I even start, I need to admit to two things.
First, my high school didn't even bother to hide its ripping off of MSU - we were the green and white Spartans, right down to the team logo of MSU. I still have to train my mind to root against the first amateur team that I had an active role in loving.
Second, the part of me that traces its roots to Greece traces those roots to what, in this day and age, we would consider suburban Sparta.
In other words, it can sometimes be hard for me to root against Sparty. Yet, I overcome this hardship, and strenuously root for the utter destruction year after year. And so, without further ado, I get to some discussion of that sentiment.
1. Still trying to get the taste of last weekend's game out of my mouth, so let's start with something fun. With Sparty on its way into South Bend, give me your favorite memory of the ND-MSU series. I don't care what it is: John L. Smith losing it, the image of MSU guarding against nothing, an actual game memory, whatever.
Not so much a game memory as a pre-game memory that has previously been brought up on this blog. My sister, her friend, and I, in a parking garage in East Lansing because we couldn't find a normal parking spot, grilling, drinking, and otherwise enjoying ourselves to the utmost. We *may* have missed the entire first half, but, as ND had pulled out to the early lead, was not really missing anything important.
2. Since 1997, Michigan State has won 9 of 12 games against the Irish. I view this as a classic case of Sparty having ND's number. What worries you most about Michigan State this weekend?
Personally, I am worried that the hangover from losing a game that should have been won will carry over to this game. MSU is not a bad team, any hangover from last week's debacle will spell absolute disaster for the Irish.
3. Between my lingering bad feelings from last weekend and the history of this series in the last decade plus, give me a good reason or two or three to feel optimistic about a change in fortune for the Irish, because right now, I could use some optimism.
I wouldn't have asked the question if I had an answer.
4. As it is my week, I get to address my current ND obsession. Have the last two games changed your opinion/reinforced your opinion re: Charlie in the box versus Charlie on the field?
I have been extremely in favor of Charlie in the box since the Hawaii game. I remarked to those unfortunate enough to have to deal with me during last week's game that I was convinced that the numerous issues with getting plays off had to deal with the communications problems that result from having someone who is not calling the plays down to someone who is on the field. We have Charlie on the sidelines, and in a matter of seconds, he needs to communicate with those individuals who can see the field from above, interpret their communications, deal with players, decide on the play, relay that play in to the game, and deal with whatever other issues are currently being presented to him from those coaches and players who are not in his immediate circle of responsibility as the effective OC (among other things that I, never having played football don't immediately recognize). I don't the Charlie is effective enough as a motivator or influencer of on-field situations to warrant his presence on the field. I view him as a distraction at this point, and think he should be in the box.
5. If nothing else, I can count on one thing to look forward to on Saturday - tailgating. Anyone have a good recipe for me to try? I make no limitations on what it can be - a drink recipe, dessert, appetizer. So long as it can be made on a grill, camp stove, or ahead of time, I am happy to listen. The better the suggestion, the more likely you are to get invited to my own tailgate.
My easiest, most fail-proof recipe:
Make-Ahead Post-Game Pulled Pork
Ingredients:
1 can beef broth
3-4 pounds pork shoulder or pork butt
1 package BBQ sauce
1 package hamburger buns
Combine the beef broth and pork in a slow cooker. Cook on low for 10 hours and drain. Add BBQ sauce. Transfer pork to a disposable aluminum pan. Store in fridge/cooler until ready to eat. Re-heat on the grill, add more BBQ sauce to taste, and enjoy. So, so easy, yet so, so tasty.
6. Finally, any predictions for the game? I encourage your predictions to involve something other than a final score, but otherwise, I make no suggestions.
A beautiful day in north central Indiana. MSU arrives at the storied stadium of the Fighting Irish, over-confident in their own abilities and their perception of a lack of abilities in their opponent. After staking out an early lead on several questionable calls by the refs (really? MSU only needs to be within two feet of in-bounds for their catches to be considered? Good to know!), ND overcomes the obvious refereeing bias and destroys the Spartans to the tune of 30 points. [ed. - I originally had something about a goat up here. I have no idea what the point of that was, other than it probably seemed to make sense at 3:00 in the morning after several glasses of wine.]
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