Bally #50
The JSW Level
Those of you that know me are aware I had a pretty impressive string of consecutive Homecomings in the works and had been able to attend 47 out of 48 since I attended Indiana State (the one I missed was to attend a niece's wedding). That is where the 47 in Bally #47 comes from. I was anxious to attend #48 but for a week or more beforehand, I had not been feeling well and was growing concerned that something was way out of whack. To make a very long story shorter, on Wednesday I went to Eskenazi for a scheduled appointment but before the end of the day, I was in the ER and ultimately in the Intensive Care unit. Acute renal failure. There's a ton more to all of it but I will spare you the details. Sadly, I spent 6+days in the ICU and was relegated to watch the Homecoming game on my i-Phone Saturday afternoon. A day earlier, I would have never been able to see anything so I wasn't going to complain about any of it.
I was proud of the team for hanging in there with a backup QB and a bit surprised we played so well defensively. I was amazed how inept the broadcast team was but that is likely why they are doing games deep in an ESPN3 schedule. I am STILL curious how many, if not all of us, had no idea that Mike Persih was not playing (including the announcers for awhile). By the middle of the 4th quarter I was beginning to sound like "Shooter" in Hoosiers and was actually told once to "tone it down." The last 2 minutes of that game seemed to take an hour and I saw things I have never seen in ANY game. Lots of room for second-guessing the kick off strategy, the multiple attempts to "ice" the kicker, the disconcerting signal call (WTF), some totally ridiculous but costly penalties for our players, you name it.....the game had it all. Bottom line, it was toughest loss I have ever seen for our men on the gridiron and I was at the Quincy fiasco. However, after the game and after I calmed down, I had a huge sense of pride for just how well we played, especially without Perish.
For decades however, I have seen the TREES not win the "big one" and this loss was just another example of how our culture can come into play in a game like that. The pride remains and this team still has a chance at being very special but until we learn to how to overcome that stigma, we will continue to be frustrated. I know these comments are not timely but for one thing, I did want to explain where I have been for the past 10 days or so. I still have some issues and my recovery will take some time. I know I am way behind on trying to get updated with everything but I actually missed the board. My body may have had a tough week but hopefully my mind is still intact. It's good to be back and I will remain Bally #47 because I will have to wait until next October to "earn" the #48!
I was proud of the team for hanging in there with a backup QB and a bit surprised we played so well defensively. I was amazed how inept the broadcast team was but that is likely why they are doing games deep in an ESPN3 schedule. I am STILL curious how many, if not all of us, had no idea that Mike Persih was not playing (including the announcers for awhile). By the middle of the 4th quarter I was beginning to sound like "Shooter" in Hoosiers and was actually told once to "tone it down." The last 2 minutes of that game seemed to take an hour and I saw things I have never seen in ANY game. Lots of room for second-guessing the kick off strategy, the multiple attempts to "ice" the kicker, the disconcerting signal call (WTF), some totally ridiculous but costly penalties for our players, you name it.....the game had it all. Bottom line, it was toughest loss I have ever seen for our men on the gridiron and I was at the Quincy fiasco. However, after the game and after I calmed down, I had a huge sense of pride for just how well we played, especially without Perish.
For decades however, I have seen the TREES not win the "big one" and this loss was just another example of how our culture can come into play in a game like that. The pride remains and this team still has a chance at being very special but until we learn to how to overcome that stigma, we will continue to be frustrated. I know these comments are not timely but for one thing, I did want to explain where I have been for the past 10 days or so. I still have some issues and my recovery will take some time. I know I am way behind on trying to get updated with everything but I actually missed the board. My body may have had a tough week but hopefully my mind is still intact. It's good to be back and I will remain Bally #47 because I will have to wait until next October to "earn" the #48!
