December 15, 2014 at 3:19 p.m.
Shoutout & Callouts
New Lambeau Field memories; Andersen's departure from UW leaves me unmoved
Shoutout & Callouts
Last Monday, I had the good fortune to travel to Green Bay for the Monday Night Football contest between the Packers and the Atlanta Falcons.
It was my first game at Lambeau Field since the Packers' Super Bowl year of 2010.
The Packers' 43-37 victory was more dramatic than it should have been as the Packers' defense sleepwalked through the second half but, as always, the trip to Lambeau was more about the experience itself than the game on the field. Here are some of my observations from the day.
• Last Monday started with a flurry as news of an airplane departing Hattiesburg, Miss. en route to Austin Straubel Airport with Brett Favre on board pretty much broke Twitter. Could Favre be going to the game? Initial tweets from WTMJ's Lance Allan made it seem that way. Soon came tweets that he would not be attending the game, only a benefit luncheon for Bart Starr's Rawhide charity. Still, Favrewatch 2014 was in full swing and the question of "will he or won't he" was the primary topic of conversation on the way to Green Bay - that is until my wife decided to take a nap somewhere west of Shawano.
By mid-afternoon it was apparent that Favre would not make a public appearance at the game. Packers' president Mark Murphy said as much in an Associated Press story filed by Greg Bates, one of my predecessors in the sports editor's desk here at the Daily News/River News. There were a spattering of Favre jerseys around the stadium, but the talk and buzz surrounding No. 4 had subsided by the time we took our traditional pregame walk around the stadium. I guess we'll have to wait until next year for Favre's first post-retirement appearance on the field - unless he changes his mind, again.
• The area around the stadium was dressed for the holidays, and a snowy backdrop added to the ambience. It was my first visit to Lambeau since the "Leap Wall" was erected this summer. Naturally, I needed to take a picture. But the highlight of the pregame walk was the minions of "Despicable Me" fame, dressed in Packers jerseys and Santa hats. Minions, indeed, appear to have good taste.
• The walk into the stadium bowl from the concourse never gets old. Sure, Lambeau now holds close to 80,000 people, but I'm always amazed by how intimate the setting feels, a picture that television can never capture. Our seats were 40 rows up in the southeast corner, above the Packers' tunnel. I've sat in several different areas inside the stadium, but I was particularly taken by how well I could see play develop from this angle. It was easy to see where all 22 men on the field were aligned, the basic type of coverage and, a few times, I could pick out where the ball was going before Aaron Rodgers threw it. Again, try as TV might, that is something that cannot be replicated sitting at home.
• My eating adventures were relatively tame this time around, though the two food items to cross my gullet both included the unofficial state meat - bratwurst. The first was a bratwurst-topped macaroni and cheese, which was riff on one of my childhood comfort food classics - hot dogs and mac. Even now, mac and cheese is a fairly common side when we fire up the grill for some brats. The combination made perfect sense and was perfectly delicious. The second was the Jumbo Brat, which was basically and extra-long brat on an extra-long bun. Caramelized onions? Yes, please! Throw on some yellow mustard and you have an excellent halftime snack.
All of these experiences were wonderful, but the memory that will stick with me from last Monday's game came courtesy of a pair of Falcons fans.
Soon after we settled into our seats, another couple sat down next to us - and it was clear they were not locals. There was a little apprehension on my part when they sat down but, before long, my wife began striking up a conversation. It turned out the couple was from the Atlanta area and decided to purchase tickets for the game over Thanksgiving. At that time their hope was they would see snow.
Mother Nature obliged, turning Lambeau into a dream scene from a sports fanatic's snow globe prior to kickoff.
The snow glistened in the lights and Christmas music blared in the background as the players warmed up for the game. At that moment, I looked over at the Falcon-clad gentleman to my right who was gazing, in bewilderment, at the scene surrounding him. I heard him whisper "a snow game at Lambeau," in a voice normally reserved for children on Christmas morning. The glint in his eye matched the wonder in his voice.
The couple left early in the fourth quarter, after Rodgers completed a long touchdown pass to Jordy Nelson to put the Packers ahead 40-24. My wife indicated that the gentleman was getting chilled, though the timing seemed to indicate that he thought the touchdown was the final nail in the Falcons' coffin for the night.
They seemed disappointed, to be sure, that their Falcons would lose. But they seemed, especially the lady, to be somewhat disappointed to be leaving as we shook hands and said our goodbyes. This relates back to a story I mentioned a couple of weeks ago regarding how a Bears fan with the back injury was graciously treated by Packers fans. The lesson became clear to me Monday night observing this couple.
Lambeau Field is a bucket list destination - not just for Packers fans, but for all sports fans. So, it is up to us, as Packers fans, to make the experience positive for our guests. That doesn't mean we can't cheer wildly for our team, or boo a bad call from a ref. That does mean we should treat our guests with respect, even if they aren't rooting for the Green and Gold. Sure, we can throw a playful jab if our guests are willing to take the ribbing, but at the end of the day, we are all football fans who came to watch a game and have a good time.
It may have been this couple's first and only trip to Lambeau but I could tell, judging by their expressions, it was an experience they would look back upon fondly, regardless of the final score.
That, more than anything, made last Monday night special in my book.
Callout: While surprising, Andersen's departure not upsetting
This was my reaction when the news broke last Wednesday that Badgers' football coach Gary Andersen was leaving Madison for supposedly greener pastures at Oregon State.
Meh.
To illustrate, allowing me to do a "Ctrl+C" from last week's column regarding the direction of the Badgers' program since Barry Alvarez left the sideline to become AD. "His successors - Bret Bielema and Gary Andersen - have not been able to take the Badgers to the next level," I wrote. "In fact, you could argue given Wisconsin's recent performance in bowl games (they haven't won one since 2009), the program has taken a step back."
So while the timing of Andersen's departure came as a surprise to many, I cannot say I was overly upset by the news. Andersen fared OK as Badgers coach, but you never got the sense the team was ready to take the jump to the next level. Bad losses this year to Northwestern and Ohio State outweigh some of the bright spots. Though, in hindsight, its fair to ask if Andersen was 100 percent focused on the Buckeyes during the Big Ten Championship game.
The offense, though explosive at times thanks to Heisman finalist Melvin Gordon, became painfully one-dimensional with the platoon of Joel Stave and Tanner McEvoy at quarterback.
What's more, there were grumblings that Andersen was not exactly happy in Wisconsin and a few high school coaches took to Twitter on Thursday, the day after his departure, to note how he didn't exactly embrace them and recruiting inside the Badger State.
While Andersen leaving for a middling Pac-12 team certainly must be a blow to the ego of Wisconsin, and the Big Ten in general, the Badgers still have an upper-echelon program. So much so that 4-star RB Jordan Stevenson from Texas committed to Wisconsin Thursday, even without knowing who the new head coach would be.
Alvarez will once again take on the role of interim head coach extraordinaire as the Badgers prep for the Outback Bowl New Year's Day versus Auburn. It appears he already has lined up Andersen's replacement. Reports have tabbed Pitt coach/former Badgers' offensive coordinator Paul Chryst as the next head coach at Wisconsin. That announcement will not be made until Wednesday at the earliest, however, in accordance with university hiring practices. Regardless, high school coaches around the state seem to be pleased with the decision, according to a WisSports.net report Friday. Let's hope Chryst has the charisma and passion to bring the Badgers back to being players in the College Football Playoff conversation.
And let's hope the he doesn't have a wandering eye like his two predecessors.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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