No, not this “The Final Countdown” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jK-NcRmVcw), the quasi-famous song by 1980′s one-hit wonder, big-hair band, Europe…what I’m trying to say is that the regular season is winding down for high school winter sports winter season.

February is just about upon us, which means, WIAA state tournaments are right around the corner.  I’ll be one of a large number of Chippewa Valley residents who will be heading for Madison, to either cover, compete in, or watch all the exciting action–somewhat similar to how Joey Tempest, the long-haired, lead singer of Europe,  crooned in the aforementioned song “The Final Countdown,” that he and his bandmates were heading for Venus.   Unlike the song, however, all those who leave the Chippewa Valley for Madison, do plan to return, and we fully expect the area will be intact upon our arrival back home.

Between now and the end of March, I’m sure I’ll be hearing “The Final Countdown” hundreds of times, because, as I’ve noted before, it is on the playlist of just about every high school pep band in the state of Wisconsin.  I’ve also discovered that the song’s popularity extends well beyond the borders of this state at the high school  (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=final+countdown+high+school+band&search_type=&aq=f) and college level ( http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=the+final+countdown+pep+band&search_type=&aq=0&oq=the+final+countdown+pep+).

Between now and March, we’ll be treated to any number of very intriguing regular season matchups, that’ll go a long way toward determining conference championships…and those matchups that take place prior to WIAA seeding meetings, will no doubt have an impact on where a team winds up in its respective bracket.

Here’s a partial list of upcoming key contests:

BOYS HS BASKETBALL

Thursday, February 11, EC Regis @ Fall Creek
The Crickets won this season’s first matchup on the Ramblers home floor, so Regis will be looking to return the favor.   That first game was a sellout, so if you’re hoping to catch the rematch, get your tickets early.   Even though this second matchup will take place before the WIAA Division 3 seeding meetings, Fall Creek and Regis are in different regionals, and will likely earn #1 seeds regardless of the outcome of this game.  Still, the tension in the gym that night is sure to be off the charts.   It’s a great rivalry between two proud programs and two well-coached teams, each of which is loaded with talent–the type of matchup that sums up all that’s good about high school sports.  If FC wins, you can all but hand the Western Cloverbelt Conference trophy to the Crickets…but if ECR comes out on top, then it’ll be a sprint to the finish.

Thursday, February 18, EC Memorial @ EC North
The Old Abes have surprised a lot of people by taking over first place in the Big Rivers Conference.  On their trip to the top of the BRC standings, the Abes made the most of their home court advantage in a 50-37 win over the Huskies.   What will North have in store for Memorial in the rematch?   If the Huskies have been in an mid-season offensive funk, they certainly snapped out of it this past Friday in a very surprising 30-point road win at Rice Lake.   Both ECM & ECN have some interesting matchups in the meantime, but if they can each take care of business until their rematch, it’ll add even more fuel to the fire.  Oh, by the way, the WIAA Division 1, Sectional 1 seeding meeting is set for the Sunday after the ECM-ECN rematch.

Friday, February 19, St. Croix Central @ Colfax
At the moment, SCC leads the Dunn-St. Croix standings with an 8-1 record, with Colfax right behind at 8-2.  The Panthers already have a 2-point win over the Vikings this season, so if SCC can win at Colfax, it could go a long way in wrapping up the DSC title for Mike Fern’s club.   Still, with Mondovi and Glenwood City both lurking behind the Panthers and Vikings, there are still a lot of things that could happen down the stretch.   The Division 3 seeding meetings are scheduled for the Sunday following this game, but both the Panthers and Vikings are in different regionals.   The way the brackets are set up, a third meeting between SCC & Colfax is possible, in a sectional semifinal, although the Panthers may have a easier path there, since Regis is one of the other teams Colfax may wind up facing in its regional.

Thursday, February 4, Amery @ Prescott, Baldwin-Woodville @ Osceola
Tuesday, February 9, Baldwin-Woodville @ New Richmond, Prescott @ Osceola
Friday, February 12, Prescott @ New Richmond
Tuesday, February 23, Amery @ New Richmond
Friday, February 26, Osceola @ New Richmond, Baldwin-Woodville @ Amery
The Middle Border Conference race is shaping up to be one of the best in the area.   Right now, only two of the eight teams in the MBC have sub-.500 conference records.  New RIchmond and Amery are 6-2, Osceola, Baldwin-Woodville, and Prescott are 5-3, with Durand 4-4.   Suffice it to say, there are any number of games that’ll have an impact on the MBC title race. 

Tuesday, February 16, Ladysmith @ Northwestern
Thursday, February 18, Northwestern @ Bloomer
The Tigers have the inside track on the Heart O’North title, with a 3-game lead on both the Lumberjacks and the Blackhawks.   Still, Ladysmith and Bloomer seem to be the only teams in the HON with a chance to hand Northwestern its first conference loss.

GIRLS HS BASKETBALL

Saturday, February 13, Rice Lake @ Menomonie
Friday, February 19, Menomonie @ EC North
The Indians and Warriors are tied for first in the Big Rivers Conference Standings, with the Huskies one game behind.   Even though Chippewa Falls may have a say in who wins the BRC title, the outcome of these two games will likely determine the conference championship.

Thursday, February 4, Altoona @ Osseo-Fairchild
Thursday, February 18, Osseo-Fairchild @ EC Regis
Tuesday, February 23, Fall Creek @ Osseo-Fairchild
Osseo-Fairchild leads the pack in the Western Cloverbelt with a 9-0 record, with Fall Creek and Regis right behind at 8-2.   If the Chieftains are going to run the table en route to a conference title, these are the three games O-F will need to win.

Tuesday, February 23, Neillsville @ Owen-Withee
A trip to the Blackhawks’ gym may be the only the only thing standing between the Warriors and an unbeaten record in the Eastern Cloverbelt.

Monday, February 1, Mondovi @ Boyceville
Thursday, February 18, Boyceville @ Colfax
The Bulldogs are closing in on a title in the Dunn-St. Croix, but to win the conference championship outright, they’ll need to win these two games.  The Colfax matchup might be especially tricky for Boyceville, especially because the previous Monday, the Bulldogs host a solid Clayton club.

Friday, February 5, Hayward @ Barron
Thursday, February 25, Hayward @ Ladysmith
Hayward has a one game lead in the Heart O’North standings over Ladysmith, which has a one game lead over third-place Barron.   The Hurricanes already have a 12-point win over the Golden Bears, along with a 13-point win over the Lumberjills, but both of those games were in Hayward. One more point of interest: the Hurricanes and Golden Bears could meet in a sectional semifinal.

BOYS HS HOCKEY

Tuesday, February 2, EC Memorial @ River Falls
Thursday, February 4, Rice Lake @ EC Memorial
Tuesday, February 9, Chippewa Falls @ EC Memorial
Thursday, February 11, EC Memorial @ EC North
The Old Abes have a chance to run the table in the Big Rivers Conference, and ECM would have to be considered the heavy favorite to win each of these games.  The combined scores of Memorial’s previous games with these four opponents is 25-1.  Only Rice Lake was able to put the puck in the net vs. the Abes.  The team with the best chance to spring an upset figures to be River Falls, which lost 4-0 at Memorial earlier this season, and gets home ice advantage for the rematch.

GIRLS HS HOCKEY

Thursday, February 4, St. Croix Valley @ Hudson
Saturday, February 13, St. Croix Valley  @ Central Wisconsin

When the Fusion visits the Raiders, it’ll be the matchup of the first-place and second-place teams in the Big Rivers.   When St. Croix Valley travels to Greenheck Fieldhouse in Schofield to skate against the Central Wisconsin Storm, it’ll be a matchup of two of the top programs in the state.   Last season, they met in a WIAA state semifinal, with the Fusion edging the Storm, 2-1 in two overtimes.

Beyond these regular season matchups, postseason action also begins in the month of February, with wrestling regionals set for Saturday, February 13, with team sectionals on Tuesday, February 16.  Individual wrestling sectionals are on Saturday, February 20, with the WIAA State Individual Tournament at the Kohl Center slated for Thursday, February 25, through Saturday, February 27.   Boys swimming & diving sectionals are Friday, February 12 – Saturday, February 13, with the state meet the following weekend.

If you’re one of those types who suffer from cabin fever at this type of the season, maybe the remedy is to check out some of the upcoming action at a local gymnasium, pool, or rink.   You’ll never get more for your sports entertainment dollar.  There’s even a good chance you’ll hear a rendition of “The Final Countdown” from a local high school pep band.

Whether or not you do attend, the News 18 Sports team will be working hard in the coming weeks, all the way through the WIAA state tournaments in March, to get you caught up on all the action. 

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

Applying the term “media circus” to Brett Favre’s arrival in the Twin Cities this past August doesn’t go far enough in explaining just how big of a deal it was for the Vikings to add the iconic quarterback to their roster.   When the head coach drives to the St. Paul Downtown Airport to pick up the QB, to then take him to team headquarters in Eden Prairie–and the whole procession is covered via live video from a helicopter, much like the O.J. Simpson/white Bronco chase–then you know you’ve crossed a line from sports journalism, beyond news coverage, straight to paparazzi-driven celebrity reporting.

For many in the media and in the fan base, Favre was the final piece of the puzzle that would finally get the Vikings back to the Super Bowl.    We know now that the team didn’t achieve that goal.

It’s one more painful chapter for a Minnesota franchise whose last trip to a Super Bowl was in 1976-77. The following year, the Vikings lost at Dallas in the NFC Championship,   then proceeded to lose at that level in seasons 1987-88 (@ Washington, 17-10), 1998-99 (Atlanta, 30-27 in OT),  2000-01 (@ NY Giants, 41-0).   As for how to rank those losses on a pain scale, I leave that up to my friends who are Vikings fans.   Personally, I think nothing was worse than that loss to the Falcons, in which Minnesota squandered home field advantage and a fairly wide disparity in talent.  

Those fine folks who back the Vikes now know what many in the Packers fan base got to know from 1992-2007.  With Favre, you take the good with the bad.    Through 16 regular season games and one playoff win, Vikings fans never saw “bad Brett” emerge…but they saw it yesterday.   To get his team to that point, Favre avoided the crushing, late-game interception…but at that point, he couldn’t avoid a bad mistake, which, combined with many others committed by Minnesota in the game, all led to the team’s ultimate downfall. 

It’s also another painful chapter for Favre, whose overtime interception in the NFC Championship game two seasons ago, led to a game-winning field goal by the Giants’ Lawrence Tynes.   Last season, a shoulder injury was a big factor in Favre’s fall-off down the stretch, as he and the Jets went from supposed conference title contenders to missing the playoffs altogether.

Vikings fans will now know the joy of dealing with non-stop talk about Favre’s future–maybe they can set up support groups with Packers fans, who know this dance all too well.

Favre got the retirement question in his postgame news conference Sunday, and responded, “In a situation like this, I really don’t want to make a decision right now based solely on what’s happened.  Because I do know the year could have not gone any better aside from us not going to Miami.” 

“I really enjoyed the guys. I just wonder if I can hold up, especially after a day like today, physically and mentally.  That was pretty draining,” Favre said. “I am going to go home a couple days, and talk it over with the family.”

On the topic of “going out on top,” Favre said, “I’d love to win the Super Bowl, who wouldn’t . . . but I know I’m going out on top, one way or the other. I didn’t feel like I had anything to prove coming in. If there were doubters out there, maybe I served notice to them.”

I can’t speak for all the other doubters, but Brett Favre definitely proved something to me.   I didn’t know how much was left in his tank (and right arm), but obviously, there was still plenty there.  

Still, while it was fun to watch Favre chuck TD passes and celebrate with his Vikings teammates in a one-sided playoff win against the Cowboys, it was difficult to watch Favre get roughed up by the Saints.  It was even more difficult to watch the cutaway shots of his wife and daughter in the stands, just cringing at the beating that their husband and father was taking.

I don’t know who in Brett Favre’s inner circle holds the most influence…or when those in his inner circle will look to talk with him about his future plans.    Hopefully, someone in that inner circle, or even Favre himself, will realize that he’s beaten the odds for so long, that maybe it’s finally time for him to back away from the table, cash in his chips, and move onto something else.

If his football career ends this way, with a loss to the Saints in an NFC Championship, then that’s how it ends.  Regardless, it’s been one hell of a ride.    

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

I made any number of observations on Sunday’s live online chat, but here are a few more:

THE KID CAN PLAY
Let’s get this whole Favre thing out of the way right now…he was outstanding in the win over the Cowboys, and the stats, while impressive (15-24, 234 yards, 4 TD’s), only tell part of the story.   Every time he needed to make a play–he did.  The 45-yard and 47-yard TD passes to Sidney Rice could not have been thrown better, while the 16-yard toss to Rice showed that somehow, the Favre pump-fake still fools NFL defenders after 19 seasons.   My opinion of his sincerity may have changed from when I covered his Packers career to now, but I will admit he’s far exceeded my expectations of what he was capable of doing this season.

THEN AGAIN, THERE’S SOME TALENT AROUND HIM
Sidney Rice has gone from an average receiver to a budding superstar…hard to say whether this would have happened with either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels throwing Rice the football.   Add in Adrian Peterson, the offensive line, and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, and there’s no wonder why the offense can score points.  Defensively, and especially at the Metrodome, the line and linebackers can control a game.  Ryan Longwell is practically automatic from inside 40 yards, Chris Kluwe is a very good punter, while the coverage units are solid. (pad level and gap control, anyone?)

DOME SWEET DOME
The Vikings went 8-0 there during the 2009 regular season, and 1-0 at home in the playoffs.

BUT IT’S NO COWBOYS STADIUM
Some older sports facilities are worth preserving basically as-is, such as Fenway Park and Wrigley Field.  Others, can be upgraded for the better, like Lambeau Field and Soldier Field (although some may question the exterior architecture of the latter).    The Metrodome has so many limitations from a fan, player, and media perspective…but will it ever be replaced?   A good source Sunday told me that probably nothing will happen until the end of Tim Pawlenty’s time as governor…apparently, the gov says things in apparent support of a new Vikings’ stadium, but will never really back a project for fear of alienating his fiscally conservative base.

AND THIS IS WHERE FAVRE COMES BACK IN
What would a Super Bowl appearance by the Vikings mean to the team’s quest for a new facility?  What about a Super Bowl win?  If neither happens, will the QB come back for another season?  Unlike the Packers, I don’t see any way that the Minnesota franchise nudges Favre out the door…the Vikings need an iconic, successful quarterback to help their construction cause.

BACK TO FOOTBALL
Despite the lopsided final score Sunday, the Cowboys had their chances in this game.  Early on, Dallas was moving the ball efficiently, but the Cowboys could only generate stats, and not points.  Losing Flozell Adams on the offensive line was a huge turning point, and changed what Dallas was able to do with their schemes.   It’s another example of how a random variable (injuries) can profoundly affect the outcome.

DISRESPECT?
Cowboys linebacker Keith Brooking was none too happy after Brett Favre tossed his final TD pass of the game, and Brooking made sure the Vikings sideline knew about it.  I guess that’s his right, but I tend to agree with those that say if you don’t like what the other team is doing, try to do something about it.   I am not buying the whole “Favre getting back at a franchise that kept him out of three Super Bowls in the 1990′s” angle either.   My personal opinion is that Brad Childress was doing what Mike McCarthy tried in the Packers regular season finale:  score as many points as you can to get the offensive confidence up, knowing that you’ll probably be in a shootout the following week.

OUR DOME, YOUR DOME
What are the Vikings’ chances Sunday at New Orleans?   Much like Minnesota, the Saints weren’t a “hot” team down the stretch, but they showed what a bye week can mean for a team in need of one.   I think the Vikes will be able to score points on the New Orleans defense, but can they score enough?   If this turns out to be one of those “can you top this” games (much like Packers-Cardinals in the wild card round), which team blinks first?  In the Vikings-Saints matchup, home field is the obvious difference…so I’ll say New Orleans wins, 37-27.

But I’ve been known to be wrong before–see my previous “Bowl-O-Rama” post.   Although I will say, those stuffed pork chops were darn good.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

APPARENTLY, THAT DEFENSIVE GAME PLAN IS STILL IN A SUITCASE…SOMEWHERE
Arizona takes the 2nd-half kick and goes 80 yards in 6 plays.  Like that woman just said on the commercial for the movie “Legion,” it’ll all be over soon.

TRAVEL-O-METER UPDATE
1.5 and dropping rapidly.

RODGERS TO FINLEY
A combination that, health permitting, should be a big-time combination for years to come. That duo will only get better going forward.

YAC, YAC, YAC
A quick out to Greg Jennings turns into a 35 yard gain…great pass by Rodgers, and outstanding hustle by Jennings.

WE DON’T CARE WHAT THAT WOMAN ON THE “LEGION” COMMERCIAL SAID
It may not be over until the Packers say it is…another bullet by Rodgers and a ridiculous one-handed catch by Jennings gives Green Bay its 2nd TD of the day.   Still, trading scores won’t win this game…the Packers need a defensive stop, or better yet, a turnover on this next Cardinals’ drive.

THAT WORKS, TOO
In lieu of a defensive stop or turnover, getting the ball back by recovering an onside kick helps the cause.

IF YOU TRY AN ONSIDE KICK
You have to go for it on 4th down.   Great blocking up front, hard running by Ahman Green, both helping to pick up Spencer Havner for that 3rd down drop.

PROGNOSIS NO LONGER NEGATIVE
Great drive following the onside kick.   Jordy Nelson may have been relieved of his kick-return duties, but catching the ball and carrying it into the end zone is another key play to get the Pack back into it.  

TRAVEL-O-METER RISING
After the Rodgers to Nelson TD, it’s at 4.

TRAVEL-O-METER FALLING
After the 42-yard run by Beanie Wells, it’s dropped to 2.5.

TRAVEL-O-METER PLUMMETING
After the Warner to Fitzgerald TD pass, it’s back to 1.5.   Apparently, it’s okay for Fitzgerald to knock Charles Woodson to the ground.  Also, it’s okay to hold Cullen Jenkins and then throw him into Warner, and then call a personal foul on Jenkins.

SPRINT TO THE FINISH
Which offense will blink first?  Which defense will step up with a stop?  This figures to be a wild fourth quarter.   Despite everything that’s gone against the Packers, Green Bay has a chance, which is all you can ask.

YAC ATTACK…AGAIN
A simple out route, Rogers to Jones, designed to simply get a first down on 4th & 5, winds up as a 30-yard TD for the Packers.  Unbelievable…

THAT FIGURES
Charles Woodson deflects a pass intended for Fitzgerald, forcing the first punt for the Cardinals in this game.

THAT ALSO FIGURES
On a 38-yard pass competion to Jermichael Finley, left tackle Chad Clifton is injured.   The cohesion of that O-line gets a big test now in one of the most important drives of the season.   Next man in: rookie T.J. Lang.

TRAVEL-O-METER UPDATE
A solid 6.5, now that the scoreboard has been updated to 38-38.

INTERESTING SCHEME
This latest Cardinals drive has featured a lot of short, safe passes using underneath routes against the Packers zone defense…the result is a ball-control drive.  It’s as if the Arizona staff doesn’t want to put its defense on the field anytime soon.

AND THEN…
Warner goes down the sideline and completes a 26-yard pass to Steve Breaston.  Two plays later, it’s Warner to Breaston again, this time for a 17-yard TD pass.   The lack of Packers pressure on Warner is giving a good, veteran QB too much time to pick apart the defense.

TRAVEL-O-METER UPDATE
With the Cards up 45-38, it’s 3.5 and falling.

YOUR TURN
Can Rodgers and the Packers offense answer yet again?

STICK-UM ON THOSE GLOVES?
Jennings makes his second spectacular catch of the game…both have been huge in this Packers second half comeback.

JUST AS WE PREDICTED
A Spencer Havner TD reception caps off an impressive scoring drive: 7 plays, 71 yards, in 3:03.

ONE TIME, BABY, ONE TIME…
The Packers need to channel their inner Sam Rutigliano on this Cardinals drive.   (an obscure reference to an old NFL Films vignette, in which Rutigliano, then the head coach of the Browns, was yelling, with hands on his knees, from the sidelines, “One time, baby, one time…one time…”)

APPARENTLY, REPEATING THE WORDS “MISS IT” AT THE TELEVISION WORKS
Neil Rackers’ FG miss will send this game to overtime.  Now, the question is whether to call heads or tails.

TAILS NEVER FAILS
Charles Woodson makes that call…who else.

TRAVEL-O-METER OFFICIALLY KAPUT
And the bottom line there, is that the Packers turned it over on their first and last plays from scrimmage. 

GAME OVER, SEASON OVER
Unless you’re one of those blind loyalists to a former Packers QB, you can’t pin this loss on Rodgers, who threw for 422 yards and 4 TD’s.   My guess it that Rodgers, in his post-game comments, will put the blame squarely on his own shoulders.  Rodgers’ regret will include an overthrow of Jennings on Green Bay’s first play from scrimmage in the OT, which could have resulted in the game-winning TD.

ISN’T IT IRONIC?
The Packers offensive line gives up a sack on the final play of the season.

WOULDA, COULDA, SHOULDA
The referees called a holding penalty on Daryn Colledge on the second play of the OT, but missed a shot to the head of Rodgers on that very same play.

NOW WHAT?
For the Packers, a flight back to Green Bay.  For yours truly, no travel to New Orleans, Minnesota, or Dallas to cover the Pack.   However, I can look forward to Monday, and an opportunity to edit what figures to be gripping video of Packers players cleaning out their lockers. 

HEADING IN A GOOD DIRECTION?
I’ll wait a while to blog about the season as a whole, and speculate about off-season moves, but the reality is that for the Packers, 2009 was far better than 2008, which was much worse than 2007, which was better than 2006.  See a trend?  Clearly, it’s been an up-and-down ride for the Pack…much like today’s playoff game.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

MOMENTUM, SCHMOMENTUM
So much for whatever momentum the Packers had after winning seven of their final eight regular season games, including a pasting of the Cardinals in the finale last week.   Through one quarter, absolutely nothing has gone Green Bay’s way.

IT’S DIFFERENT IN THE PLAYOFFS
I’ve been a fairly big Aaron Rodgers supporter since he took over as the Packers’ quarterback, but there are three passes I’m sure he wants back: the interception on his first pass attempt, a first quarter overthrow of Greg Jennings that could have been a touchdown, and a second quarter overthrow of James Jones that would have kept a Green Bay drive alive in Cardinals’ territory.

IT’S THE SAME IN THE PLAYOFFS
Mason Crosby missing a 52-yard field goal can be blamed on the kicker. or else the head coach for making that call to attempt a field goal.

ATTENTION, DOM CAPERS
Did you pack your defensive game plan for this trip?  If so, can you locate it?  Soon?

GROUNDED IN EAU CLAIRE
On a scale of 1-10, 10 being me checking into a New Orleans hotel room to begin covering a Packers-Saints playoff game, and 1 being me sitting at home next Sunday planning News 18′s local sports coverage for the week of 1/18-1/24, after one quarter, we’re sitting at a 1.25.

THANK YOU, CHARLES & CLAY
Just when the Packers were looking like they’d surrender yet another score, Charles Woodson forces a Larry Fitzgerald fumble and Clay Matthews recovers.   Repeat after me: big players, making big plays, in big games…

SNEAKY? NOT REALLY
Aaron Rodgers running a QB sneak is a staple of the Packers goal line offense.   Still, it works, and the Packers will take the TD. 

GAME ON?
Now, the Packers’ fortunes in this game rest on the Green Bay defense.  A stop, and another GB score, and it could be a much happier flight back to Green Bay.

SPEAKING OF FLIGHTS
The Brado Travel-O-Meter has now edged up to 2.5.

QUALIFYING THE TRAVEL-O-METER
If I had small print on this blog editor, I’d write this: Any travel by News 18 sports director is subject to management approval.

MEANINGLESS TRENDS
The Packers led the NFL in turnover ratio during the regular season but are -1 today.   Green Bay also had the #1 ranked defense against the run, but with just over 2 minutes to go in the half, the Cardinals have already gained 87 rushing yards.

I’LL SAY REMAIN CALM, ALL IS WELL, BUT ONLY IF
The Packers can score points on this final drive before the half, and keep the Cards off the scoreboard before they go into the locker room.

COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE, COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER
Despite the overthrows, the drops, and the sacks allowed, I think the Packers offense is capable of putting more points on the board.  The game rests on the Green Bay D, now, because if the Pack can’t stop the Cards’ O, then nothing else matters.

KEY STATS AT THE HALF
Total yards: GB 136, AZ 223
Turnovers: GB 2, AZ 1

Posted under Hometown Sports

I began this decade by ringing in the New Year with a large group of television and newspaper colleagues at the Century Club, a fairly hip establishment located a short walk away from the Rose Bowl media hotel.   I closed out 2009 by spending a quiet night at home with my fiancee.  

Clearly, things have changed in my life…for the most part, they’ve changed for the better.  My current home is certainly a lot nicer than the Eau Claire apartment in which I lived back in 2000, there’s more in my 401K now than there was back then,  and most importantly, I’m a big fan of my present relationship.

On the other hand, I’ve got a few more aches and pains in my knees, and a few less hairs atop my head…on top of that, many of those that remain appear to have changed from their former dark brown color to a disturbing shade of gray. 

Still, at least I made it through the decade, which is more than the Century Club can say.  That establishment closed in 2007, a victim of Los Angeles-area real estate development “progress.”  The site that was once home to Sunday night R & B and hip-hop (with guests such as Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Tyra Banks), as well as Dustin Hoffman’s daughter’s bat mitzvah, is now yet another Century City high-rise. 

I remain the sports director at News 18, which means, over the past ten years, I’ve had a privelege of witnessing some memorable moments from the world of sports.   There have been so many that I need to draw some lines.  For instance, the first event of the decade I covered,  the 2000 Rose Bowl between the Badgers and Stanford, winds up falling in the “Honorable Mention” category.  Back-to-back Rose Bowl wins was an unprecedented accomplishment, not only for the UW, but also for the Big Ten.  However, the game itself lacked a whole lot of drama.

Drama is a key element of the “BRADO AWARDS: Most Memorable Games of 2000-09.”   One other criteria is that I had to see the game in person, which takes out moments such as Jill Janke’s game-winning HR to give UWEC the 2008 NCAA Division III softball title.

NFL

Giants 23, Packers 20, F-OT, NFC Championship Game, January 20, 2008

I still feel a chill thinking about this game, memorable for both its frigidity (-3 with a -24 wind chill) and finality (the end of the Packers’ season and the end of the Green Bay career of Brett Favre).  When Lawrence Tynes booted the game-winning field goal in overtime, it was as if all of the life got sucked out of Lambeau Field–not counting those rowdy Giants fans celebrating in the stands and those New York front office and media types celebrating in the press box.  

Some two seasons after the fact, I am still stunned by the outcome of this game…like many others, I was starting to believe that everything was falling perfectly in place for the Pack to make a run to the Super Bowl.  Instead, it was yet another reminder that there’s always another perspective to what you believe, and there are no guarantees in sports.  
Honorable mention: Packers 41, Raiders 7, December 22, 2003

Favre was simply spectacular, throwing for 399 yards and four TD passes one day after the death of his father.  As good as he was, his teammates were simply not going to let him lose the game.   Green Bay’s defense dominated the pedestrian Oakland offense, while Packers receivers Robert Fergson, Wesley Walls, and Javon Walker outfought Raiders defenders to pull down Favre’s passes into traffic.  

WIAA

Boys basketball: Glenwood City 70, Kenosha St. Joseph 67, March 15, 2001

There were three teams that were considered favorites to win the Division 3 title in 2001–then there was Glenwood City.    Kenosha St. Joseph supposedly had three Division I college recruits, Marshall had the 1-2 punch of the ultra-competitive Jon Krull and the uber-talented Tony Miggins, while unbeaten Weyauwega-Fremont had the state’s leading scorer in Matt Rohde, a UWGB recruit.    Still, I thought GC could suprise some people, and when KSJ failed to show up for the start of its Wednesday shootaround at the Kohl Center, I figured the Lancers were ripe for the picking.  

The game itself was nothing short of spectacular.  Glenwood City shredded the KSJ defense for 27 1st quarter points, but the Hilltoppers could never quite shake the Lancers.   Every time one team looked like it was going to put the game away, the other would answer…a game in which the only way to win was to have the final posession.

That final posession for Glenwood City came about when Nick Ohman outmuscled two KSJ players to rebound a missed free throw by Hilltoppers’ teammate Karl Karau.  The resulting held ball gave GC the basketball, setting up one final shot.   Ohman was an obvious choice to take that final shot, since he’d scored 28 points on 13-19 shooting.   Ryan Tiberg (13 points on 4-8 shooing, 2-2 from 3-point range) was another option, as was Karau, who had banged his way to 13 points (5-10 FG).  

Instead, after receiving the inbounds pass, Tiberg kicked the ball out to guard Scott Miller, who up to that point, had scored four points on 1-6 shooting (1-4 on 3-pointers).  However, when it counted the most, Miller squared up, shot the ball with total confidence, and hit nothing but net, just as time expired.

Glenwood City went on to win the state title by harassing Rohde into a 4-19 shooting performance, as the Hilltoppers got another 3-point win.   Still, in my mind, that championship was a footnote to one of the best high school basketball games I’ve ever witnessed.  

Honorable mention: Any of the three boys hockey matchups between Eau Claire North and Eau Claire Memorial during the 2006-06 season, which featured an incredible amount of talent on the ice, combined with amazing levels of tension in the stands.

NCAA

NCAA Men’s Hockey National Championship: Wisconsin 2, Boston College 1, March, 2006

The Badgers’ 2005-06 season included winning an outdoor game vs. Ohio State at Lambeau Field as well as a triple-overtime NCAA regional final in Green Bay over Cornell, but there’s no way anything can top a nail-biting win in a national title game.   How loud was it inside the Bradley Center on that night?  My ears were still ringing hours after the game.   It was also a thrill watching local players such as Jake Dowell (Eau Claire), Davis Drewiske (Hudson), and Josh Engel (Rice Lake) celebrate a championship.   Engel, a defenseman, was emotionally spent after being on the ice during the Eagles’ final frantic, and ultimately futile push for the tying goal.   Speaking of emotion, I’ll never forget Dowell talking about how gratifying it was knowing his father (battling Huntington’s disease)  got to see Jake win a national title.  Drewiske took off his national title cap to don a Badgers cap worn by his grandfather, who’d just past away the previous summer.

Honorable mention: Badgers beat Stanford in 2000 Rose Bowl, Davidson defeats Wisconsin in 2008 men’s basketball regional semifinal.

NHL

Wild 3, Flyers 3, October 11, 2000

The tie may have been anti-climactic, but having the NHL back in the Twin Cities was a huge event.   I may never get over my bitterness over how the North Stars left the Twin Cities, but some of that negativity went way as I covered the Wild’s first-ever home regular season game.  As if it were scripted, Richfield native and former Minnesota Gopher Darby Hendrickson scored the Wild’s first goal of the game.

NWL

Express 4, Battle Creek 0, July 16, 2009

Tyler Bremer’s no-hitter (about which I’ve blogged at length just after it had happened) trumps some other memorable moments in team history, such as the Carson Park home opener in 2005, or the 2007 NWL championship series.

MLB

Brewers  5, Reds 4, April 6, 2001

You could certainly argue that there have been many more dramatic games played at Miller Park, and I certainly agree.  The sad fact, however, is that I wasn’t there to cover a whole lot of them.   Still, as someone who made many a trip to old County Stadium, seeing Miller Park for the first time was awe-inspiring, especially considering the fact that the structure’s debut was delayed by a tragic crane collapse.   Beyond that, the construction of Miller Park ensured that another generation of Wisconsin baseball fans would have a home in which to watch major league action.

For now, I won’t be making any predictions about what’s to happen in the upcoming decade.  I know, back on January 1, 2000,  I would not have been able to foresee the specifics any of the events I’ve just talked about.  

What I do know is that there are sure to be many more memorable moments to come in the next ten years. Suffice it to say, if it happens in local/regional sports in the years 2010-2019, News 18 will be there covering the action.

Happy New Year to all!

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports