It's that time again, time for BOILERMAKER FOOTBALL!

Oh yes, it's one of the best times of the year that's right college football season is BACK!! I will be packing up and heading to Ross Ade Stadium Saturday to watch my beloved Boilermakers take on Middle Tennessee State at noon. When I started this blog, and started to get to know other bloggers better I put a thought together why not start picking games on here, and well a tradition was born. I have decided for week one to fly solo, but from week 2 on I am hoping my fellow blogger friends will help me and guest pick with me. I think one of the coolest things that's happened from doing this is I find myself watching/rooting for teams I never even thought of from Clemson to Boise State, Idaho to Nebraska, and many many more I truly do root for all of your teams, unless they are playing the Boilermakers :)

Purdue will take on Middle Tennessee State Saturday at Ross Ade in their home opener, I am excited to head over to West Lala and catch up with old friends, tailgate, and hopefully see the Boilers win. It's been tough being a Boilermaker lately we just can't shake the injury bug as our number 1 QB went down with an ACL tear just last week. So who knows what's going to happen in this game, but I feel good about it still so we'll shall see. I am not happy that I have to pack my rain gear for the game as they are calling for showers BOO!! Better now I guess though while in the 90's then later when it's in the 40's. Onto the games, PLEASE let me know if I forgot any team or if you want your team included. Rocket's Pittsburgh Steelers will be added once NFL season kicks off.

Montana Grizzlies @ Tennessee Volunteers(Tiggy & Emily)
As most major conference teams do Tennessee is pretty much assuring themselves a win in their opener. Playing in the SEC this is smart! Vols will roll in their opener
TENNESSEE 41 montana 7
EDIT FINAL SCORE TENNESSEE 42 montana 16
Phats- WOOHOO

Arkansas State Red Wolves @ Illinois Fighting Illini(Delta)
Zook finally got smart, or the AD did and scheduled a cupcake to open the season. I don't think this Illini team will be very good, but some others believe it might be. Won't learn much from this one, but I do believe it will never been in doubt
ILLINOIS 31 arkansas state 10
EDIT FINAL SCORE ILLINOIS 33 ark state 15
Phats- WOOHOO

Western Carolina Catamounts @ Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets(Emily)
My cousins are DIEHARD Ga Tech fans, and I don't think they, or Emily will be sweating this game too much.
GEORGIA TECH 51 western carolina 10
EDIT FINAL SCORE GA TECH 63 western carolina 21
Phats- WOOHOO

Chattanooga Moccassins @ Nebraska Cornhuskers(Travis)
First off welcome to the Big Ten Nebraska you're now our conference brothers so therefore I root for you in all non conference games. However, I don't think you'll need my support in this one to pull it out.
NEBRASKA 61 chattanooga 0
EDIT FINAL SCORE NEBRASKA 40 utc 7
Phats- WOOHOO

Texas State Bobcats @ Texas Tech Red Raiders(Jef & Fuzz)
Ya not a lot of great week one games on here, and this is no exception. Guns Up Red Raiders ought to roll to a victory in this one.
TEXAS TECH 49 texas state 10
EDIT FINAL SCORE TECH 50 texas state 10
Phats- WOOHOO(DAMN I WAS CLOSE!)

Bowling Green Falcons @ Idaho Vandals(Shife)
Good opener for the Vandals, at least better than having to go to USC! Shife should be pretty happy because I foresee the Vandals going 1-0 to start the season!!
IDAHO 35 bowling green 28
EDIT FINAL SCORE BOWLING GREEN 32 idaho 15
Phats = D'oh

Miami OH Redhawks at Missouri Tigers(Delta & Nutz)
This seems more like a 5 vs 12 match up in the NCAA basketball tournament. I have no idea how good Missouri is suppose to be this year, I know last year was suppose to be a down year and they made a bowl game. Good opener to feel things out for the Tigers at least.
MISSOURI 38 miami 17
EDIT FINAL SCORE MISSOURI 17 miami 6
Phats- WOOHOO

Troy Trojans at Clemson Tigers(Topolk & Emily)
So Topolk told me this could be a tough opener if Clemson overlooks them. I don't see that happening it might be close for a quarter before the Tigers put it away before halftime.
CLEMSON 38 troy 14
EDIT FINAL SCORE CLEMSON 43 troy 19
Phats- WOOHOO

Rice Owls at Texas Longhorns(Cheryl & Gary)
Us Boiler fans are going to watch this one with interest, because we travel to take on the Rice Owls in week two. Texas probably has too much firepower for the Owls, and will pull away late in the first quarter and never look back, HOOK EM HORNS
TEXAS 52 rice 14
EDIT FINAL SCORE TEXAS 34 rice 9
Phats- WOOHOO

Marshall Thundering Herd @ West Virgina Mountaineers(Angel Jr)
Ahh a rivalry game to kickoff the season got to love it! Remember when Marshall was good, ya it was THAT long ago. West Virginia, plays in the Big Least but should still have no problems with their rivals in this one.
WEST VIRGINIA 28 marshall 13
EDIT FINAL SCORE WVU 34 marshall 14
Phats- WOOHOO

Kent State Golden Flashes(DG) @ Alabama Crimson Tide(Gary, Cheryl, Booya)
Funny story Kent State was suppose to be Purdue's opener this year, but Bama paid them a buttload of money to go there and get their ass kicked so they broke their contract with us. Bama will have no problems in this one, Cheryl if you go and get bored watch your National Champion cheerleaders they are awesome!
ALABAMA 62 kent state 7
EDIT FINAL SCORE ALABAMA 48 kent state 7
Phats - WOOHOO

Boise State Broncos(Duck) vs Georgia Bulldogs *Neutral Site
Yes, this game is played at a neutral site but lets be honest here it will be 75/25 if not more of a Georgia crowd. Have you ever been to a game against the Dawgs? They are ANNOYING! We played them in 2 bowl games they bark, A LOT!! That is enough for me to pick Boise!! Besides duck told me their QB is a lot like Brees, that sold me, Boise will be your National Champ folks :)
BOISE STATE 31 georgia 28
EDIT FINAL SCORE BOISE STATE 35 uga 21
Phats- WOOHOO

BIG GAME OF THE WEEK
Oregon Ducks vs Louisiana State Tigers
WOW Huge game to open the season, I believe these teams our 3/4 in the first poll so this will go a LONG way in helping towards a title. Oregon fans are cool we hung out with some when they came to Ross Ade, LSU plays in the SEC and they think their crap don't stink. That's enough for me to pick the ducks baby! Plus I have mentioned before I love donald duck :)
OREGON 35 lsu 28
EDIT FINAL SCORE LSU 40 oregon 27
Phats- D'oh

Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders @ Purdue Boilermakers
Well, I have no idea how this season will go, I would be lying if I said Rob Henry going down with an ACL Tear wasn't a punch in the gut. Our other QB Marve(yes the one in the Miami scandal but he was cleared) is almost healed from his ACL but they are thinking Big Ten season for him. So who knows? I like us in this game but I don't think it will be an offense explosion and might even be some tense moments, but the Boilers will put the Hammer Down when it counts!
PURDUE 31 middle tennessee state 14
EDIT FINAL SCORE PURDUE 27 middle tennessee state 24
Phats- WOOHOO!!

Hail Hail to old Purdue all Hail to our old gold and black
Hail Hail to old Purdue our friendship may she never lack
Ever Grateful, ever true thus we raise our song a new FIRE UP!
Of the days we've spent with you, all Hail our own Purdue
GO BOILERS!

BTFU!!!

Tragedy

Tragedy it really sucks when it strikes, but it sucks even more when it strikes so close to home. For those that don't know or might not have heard at the Indiana State Fair about a week ago the country band Sugarland was set to take the stage for a concert. However, mother nature had other ideas and brought in a wind gust that local meteorologists are saying was 70mph if not over that. It was then the unthinkable happened, the entire stage that Sugarland was to perform on came crashing down on top of people in the sugar pit and VIP seating on the track. In just a horrific scene people were trapped under the metal of the stage, and what happens so often in an event like this many people instead of running away to safety rushed to where the chaos was taking place and did everything and anything they could to help. One story that was all over the local news was about a 3 yr old girl who was crushed underneath the stage, and was fortunate that both a doctor and a nurse who were attending the concert saw her and immediately helped her, inturn saving her life. It's sad that this happened at all, and of course everyone is debating whether it could have been avoided. My two cents the fact that Marion County where Indianapolis is was under a severe thunderstorm warning at the time should have been enough to evaccuate the concert goers to safety, but talkimg about the shoulda/coulda doesn't really help. We had talked about attending this concert and chose not to, but we did know quite a few people that had attended, including my sister's sister-in-law. It was a crazy night waiting to hear if everyone was alright, and thankfully they all are. Stephanie(my sister's in law) is still having nightmares where she wakes up and can still hear the people screaming. All told there were 7 fatalities, and well over 40 injuries and basically just have to say that my heart, and prayers go out to all the families who lost love ones, and friends I can't even imagine. Sugarland took the stage for the first time the other night in New Mexico, and had a stirring and emotional tribute for our state, and included a moment of silence which was very touching and nice that our local news stations were allowed to carry it live.


How about some light stuff to close on so it's not all emotional, and sad here today.
I watched the Visa Gymnastics championships over the weekend, anyone else? I have to say watching I am pretty sure my body was thanking me for stopping that sport when I did. For those that don't know I started gymnastics when I was 5 and somehow I was on the elite track myself, before a string of events forced me to switch to taking classes for fun, and eventually just teaching. Anyway, watching it reminded me of the hard work and dedication it takes, and some of you might scoff at this or laugh, but I truly believe gymnasts just might be the toughest athletes out there. Just look at the US women, at the last world championships our national champ competed and won 4 medals on a foot that had a broken bone in it! Or go back to the 08 olympics where Chellsie Memell competed on a completly broken foot, how many prima donna NFL/NBA/MLB would do that?! Anyway congrats to our new National champs, and it was grea to see some old faces back in the fold.

Almost football season!! The excitement is building ready for the Boilers to shock the world baby!! BOILER UP!

Countdown To Kickoff!!

Is your excitement growing because mine sure is, we are two weeks away from the kickoff of another season of Purdue Boilermaker football! While lots of people mourned while the NFL was locked out I didn't care because I knew college football season was on, and to me there is NOTHING better. I like Pro football, but it's not the same nor is it as fun, you just can't beat the atmosphere of a college football game. I can't wait, that was the only good thing about returning from vacation my season tickets had arrived!! Before I get into Purdue though some major news has been developing in college sports lets take a look at that first.

Texas A&M attempted to move to the SEC before the SEC said not now, which I hope doesn't happen. I love college basketball and I think that will ruin that sport with power conferences. Rumored to go with A&M was Clemson, Florida State, and Missouri again I find this odd. Missouri is the school nobody wanted when the Big Ten, and Pac 10 expanded so why the hell would the SEC take them? As for Clemson I don't think that's a smart move for them either, and yes I am apologizing in advance if I make any of the Clemson fans I have that read this mad. However, I just don't see them being competitive at all in the SEC for football. Anyway, we shall see if what comes of this.

Miami- Boy oh boy are they in a shit load of trouble, and oddly enough Purdue might be impacted as we have a player on our team that transferred from there and was implicated in the Yahoo report. Luckily he never played last year was injured, and still isn't healthy. I always knew the U was dirty but man oh man, it could be SMU all over again. CRAZY!!

As for the Boilers my expectations are low, but hey I love going to the games. That is something I will never stop doing(unless I really do move to Florida) Last year we were hit so hard by the injury bug that we were down to our 5th string QB, I didn't even know we had a 5th stringer!! The ACL curse caught up to us, so really all I am hoping for is a HEALTHY season! Even with all the losses last year(we were 4-8) I still had fun at the games, because you just can't beat college football. Here is a look at our schedule
Middle Tennessee State- Should be a win, but you never know I guess they were third in the sun belt last year.

@ Rice- We need this one if we have any desire to get to 6 wins, it will be tough on the road but we should pull it out.

Southeast Missouri State- Hey we can't lose on HS band day can we?!

Notre Dame- This one is going to be fun, under the lights going with the black/gold game theme last time we played them under the lights we made a bonehead move and lost on a last second TD. We have a shot, but it won't be a make or break game.

Minnesota- Another crucial game if we want to get to 6 wins and being at home we have a great shot.

@ Penn State- The only big ten stadium I have never been too, what do you think road trip?? We never play good at all at Happy Valley, not really expecting that to change. Even Drew Brees couldn't lead us to victory there.

Illinois- The game I am most looking forward to, HOMECOMING!!! Phats will return to the field, and watch us WIN!!!

@ Michigan- Hey last time we visited the Big House(2 yrs ago) we won, and that was the first time in 30 some years, why not make it 2 straight ha!

@ Wisconsin- This is the toughest stadium to play in, in the big ten and maybe the country. Their fans are absolute CRAZY! Last time I was there we had beer almost poured on us as we entered the stadium.

Ohio State- Ahh Cheater U! I think if you say your schools name in such a snobby way like Miami and OSU then it's a good chance you're a cheater. Last time they visited Ross Ade we stunned them behind now Washington Redskin Ryan Kerrigan. It could happen again.

Iowa- Another tough one at the tail end of the season, after we added Nebraska to the Big Ten Iowa became our protected rival from the other division, ya I am not sure how either, but bring it on Hawks!

@Indiana- IU SUCKS! If we lose this we might as well drop football, and after playing UM, Wisky, OSU, and Iowa in consecutive weeks this will be like playing the girls scouts, and we might be desperate for a victory.

Realistcally I see us 5-7 however we could suprise and be 6-6. We have to go 3-1 or 4-0 in the non conference schedule and the rest of the wins would be made up of Illinois, Minnesota, IU. We will see, who knows how good we'll be or even if Hope can coach since he has had so many injuries to deal with. I know that once that first game comes I will be in the stands ready to BOILER UP!

I will be doing guest picking again, I am sure you all are thrilled!! Hope I can count on all of you to be volunteers again. I will pick all your teams as well, so if I don't cover your team let me know and I will add them. How are your teams looking? Who you think will win it all this year? I am so ready for college football!!!

BOILER UP!
Phats

Worst part of vacation, they come to an end

So, I am back from our week long Disney vacation and I am definitely sad it's over. For many reasons first off we had a BLAST, second I am back to work now BOO!!!! But lets focus on the fun stuff, vacation!! We took a HUGE group to Disney, and by huge I mean lots of family members from Saturday-Saturday, all counting that is 8 days together in close quarters(haha). Anyway, we had a really good time so much so that none of us wanted to come home this past Saturday. Here are some of the highlights from each park.

Magic Kingdom- Pretty much closed this park down twice. Our daily routine was go to a park in the morning, and then take a break and head back out at night to a different park. With great planning we hit MK one night that it had extra magic hours for guests staying at Disney Resorts. That means it closed to the public at midnight, but for resort guests it stayed open til 2am, and we made it. The lines were not that bad, but they were pretty much non existent at 1am. I think we did every major attraction at least once, and some twice. I think the biggest hits were Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Philharmagic, and of course for the nephews who love the movies Pirates of the Caribbean. My favorite there is Splash Mountain, it's such a great ride. We got to see 2 parades, the wishes fireworks show, and meet a very interactive chip n dale they were great. However, the highlight for me was eating at my favorite place there Liberty Tree Tavern, my mouth waters just thinking about it!!

EPCOT- Definitely not a favorite for the kids on the trip because the countries bored them, and the thrill rides since so few had long lines. I love the America Adventure, especially being that I am such a history buff with a speciality in US History, this show literally tears me up at the end if you ever make it to EPCOT go to the American Pavilion trust me. It was nice to see spaceship earth(where you go to the top of the big ball) had changed a bit it was now interactive which was cool. We also did turtle talk with Crush at the seas, which we have never done before and it was really good. EPCOT was the only place we got stuck in the rain as well, luckily we were right by the country the UK and just ducked into one of their buildings. The real highlight to EPCOT though came when it was close to closing and I spotted the character spot, where Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and Donald were all waiting!!! We waited 30 mins but my Disney Dream came true I finally got my picture taken with my all time favorite Disney character, Donald Duck!!! We took 2 together, I was in heaven.

Hollywood Studios- This is my favorite park, partly because it has my two favorite rides in Tower of Terror, and Aerosmiths Rock n Roller coaster. It's also nice they are right across from each other. For some reason lines were just not that bad everywhere but Rock N Roller coaster, but thanks to fast passes we got three rides on that one. Tower of Terror is literally my favorite ride at all of Disney, for starters you never know how many times you're going to drop! We got different ride programs everytime we rode it, and we rode it 8 times!! The longest we waited in the stand by line was 20 minutes. Got to do the new star tours, and I have never been a fan of that one, but the changes have made it cooler for sure, and I was the spy on board!! Studios also has the best live music, they had bands playing almost all day long, and a special bus show that was every hour on the hour. It was also cool that one of my nephews really enjoyed the great movie ride so we did that 2 times for him.

Animal Kingdom- We started our trip here as it was the first park we visited. Most of the family wanted to do the water rapids ride, but I am a priss and I don't like to get my clothes/hair wet so I skipped out, and was able to get about 5 rides on the Expedition Everest Yeti Roller Coaster thru the single rider line while they did that, it was much more worth it than being wet all day. In all I was able to ride that amazing roller coaster 12 times! I know you don't but I swear it feels like you go upside down when you travel backwards. My favorite show in all the disney parks is also at AK, the festival of the Lion King. This show is SOOOO good, that we saw it twice, and both times one of my nephews was picked to be a volunteer. The first time, my nephew was asked to demonstrate what a giraffee sounds like, and the second show my other nephew was asked to play an instrument in the parade during the finale. I love this show, when I watch the tumble monkeys I am like hey I could totally do that!! Other highlights, my mom bought our picture on the dinosaur ride, it's a great picture because we all posed, except my one nephew is looking the wrong way but it made it cuter.

Our hotel was awesome as we remembered it, we stayed at the Beach Club which is an EPCOT resort. For those that don't know staying on Disney property is the best way to go, you get so many perks. We could walk or boat to EPCOT, walk or boat to Studios, and then had to bus to both animal and magic kingdom. The best part about staying on property though is the magic hours, you either get a couple extra hours in the morning or at night, when you get in line for a ride you just show your hotel key(which is also your park ticket, meal plan, etc) my poor brother in law lost two of these cards while there, thankfully he found them both but guest relations told him it happens all the time haha. The other best part of the beach club their pool, they have the best pool of all Disney resorts, it has a sand bottom!! The noon hour is crazy there it's one big party, and yours truly won a dance contest I am the best :) This is just one part of the pool.

All said we had a great vacation, great food, and I came home with 5 new bruises from the roller coasters, 4 on my biceps, and one on my back pretty low considering we were there so long. Oh Yea I was totally hit on twice!!! The first time while riding the tower of terror I was sitting by a very cute girl who grabbed my arm on the drop too bad she was only 9 ;) One of the zebras in the festival of the lion king show winked at me, but duck pointed out that doesn't count cuz she is paid to do that. However, the best flirt I got was Minnie Mouse gave me a kiss!!! Jealous? You should be :)

Now it's back to the real world, back to work, back to coaching and I am not looking forward to it. I am counting the days til Christmas Break. How are all of you doing? Anyone watching Big Brother? I am voting for Cassie to come back into the house!!!