Anything Else Forum

Anything Else Forum

Offtopicland. Remember: no politics, religion, or hot-button social issues.

Under the Fedora, Week 6 - Hoosier Daddies?

0 HS
Earle's picture
October 9, 2015 at 10:27am
99 Comments

This week’s installment seems a little lighter than usual.  Like the Buckeyes against Indiana, I’m a little lacking in inspiration.

Memories Light the Corners of My Mind

Why does Indiana give this team such a hard time?  This game is routinely closer than it should be.  That is not to say that Indiana is a bad team, but they’re still Indiana for pity’s sake.  It’s a basketball school!  It’s not like you see goalposts on every barn when you drive through the state.  But in the spirit of giving credit where credit is due, the Hoosiers played hard, and played well.  And Kevin Wilson is a good coach who had his team ready to play.  Like many teams that have come before them (and will come after), Indiana decided that they were not going to let Ezekiel Elliott salmon beat them, but also like a lot of teams, that strategy failed them in the end.

However, if the Bucks are going to be successful against better defenses, they are going to have to throw the ball down the field with a lot more efficiency than they have for most of the season thus far.  Whether it’s a deep route on a corner playing on an island, or a seam route designed to get behind the walked up safeties, teams are going to continue to stack the box against Ohio State until they get burned, and I don’t mean burned by Zeke making a great play in spite of the right defensive call.  Opposing coaches will see what Indiana did to Ohio State, playing the odds and hoping that their free hitters don’t miss when Zeke comes calling.  I won’t comment further on the quarterbacks at this point, except to say, “Good luck, Cardale.  We’re all counting on you.”

Did you see that run?

I thought the defense played very well for most of the Hoosier game, but man, that second half took me back to 2012.  I know that it was really only a handful of big plays, but when Xanadu Diamond started making Memorial Stadium seem as otherworldly as his name, that long-suppressed #FireFickell twitch started to resurface. That said, the defense was very stout against Indiana’s vaunted running game(?!), and but for some scampering from a backup quarterback, so I can’t get too upset.  Still waiting for the real Bullets to show up against a non-MAC team, though.  Yes, Luke we won, but you wouldn’t know it from being around here much of this week.

Not Not Your Father’s Root Beer

Not pumpkin-flavored

I had the occasion to try a new brew this week, Breckenridge Brewery’s Autumn Ale.  I’m always up for trying something new, and the barkeep billed it as a honey brown ale, so I thought I’d give it a try.  Well, as soon as I saw it, I was dubious.  Very dark brown.  I am generally not a fan of porters or stouts (with a few exceptions), so based on the color I was bracing myself for disappointment.  But I found myself liking it quite a bit.  While it certainly had some of the malty flavor profile of a stout or a porter, it was not so heavy, and lacked the aftertaste that I often dislike about those styles.  Very slightly hoppy finish.  I’m a big fan of pale ales and IPAs, so I wouldn’t have been disappointed with a little more hoppiness, but given my expectations upon seeing it, I was pleasantly surprised.  I had two.  Might’ve had more, but I was pressed for time. Best of all, no pumpkins were harmed in the production of this beverage.  [Fedora tip to YTown for the tip—I was, in fact, hating my job at that particular moment, but that’s a story for another time.]

The Grand Illusion

Michigan looks to be for real.  Following its 28-0 pasting of the Maryland Lame Ducks, King Khakis’ only blemish so far (besides his personality) is a loss on the road to what looks to be a very good Utah squad (?!).  But if you ask anyone who had the misfortune of watching the first half of that game (they’re easy to spot—they’re the ones with the scars from trying to gouge their eyes out), they’ll tell you that Michigan’s offense is nearly as bad as Maryland’s.  And Maryland is just turrible, turrible, turrible.  They should really do something about their coaching situation. Michigan’s defense will make them a tough out for anyone, but their offense does not scare me one bit. Not with Jake Rudock manning the controls, anyway.  I’m very much looking forward to their matchup with Northwestern on Saturday.  The mere fact that a Michigan/Northwestern matchup is a thing should tell you how far Michigan has to come back from.

Pioneering (or not) Losses

With the unveiling of Oregon’s latest fashion statement, I can’t help but think that the Browns should follow suit.  The Browns are truly pioneers, losing how no team has lost before.  Except that they have.  You would think that losing on an untimed down after the clock had expired due to a defensive penalty would be a once-in-a-generation type occurrence.  But then, if you thought that, you wouldn’t be a Browns fan.  Though this most recent loss pales in comparison to the Dwayne Rudd incident (Browns fans will remember), it is just another chapter in the long story of Cleveland futility.  Thanks again to the local affiliate for sparing me the pain of watching yet another unbelievable totally believable loss.

TL;DR: Did we win?; Believe it or don’t; NNYFRB; Browns suck in new and interesting old and infuriating ways

This is a forum post from a site member. It does not represent the views of Eleven Warriors unless otherwise noted.

View 99 Comments